Yesterday afternoon, we travelled farther up the same valley as we visited in the morning. Heading over one of the mountains, we stopped to photograph the spring blush of color in the emerging leaves. The sun would come and go, usually at the wrong time, but those are the challenges of photography.

After getting waylaid for another stop or two, we headed to one of the farms we love to photograph. Usually, there are Suffolk sheep, but most of them had been moved to another pasture. And the four that we saw were definitely not following our instructions as to proper placement and positioning.

In fact, they moved to an unphotogenic corner of some fencing, and that was that. Apparently, we did not bring the proper model releases.

The sky was ominous, and we were really hoping that the sun would break through underneath. And so, we waited … and waited … and waited, to no avail. We did our shots, however, knowing that one can recover some lost light in post-processing.

I look for patterns in nature, and here, the sky was dramatic enough to carry the images The spring greens that are so amazingly saturated were true to form. In fact, I had to pull back on the saturation a tad to tone it down.

I remember my mother, a very accomplished painter, complained about those spring greens and how hard they were to paint without looking garish.

“No one will believe it was actually that color,” she would comment.

This morning, we had fun in the private gorge we visit every year. With intense, recent flooding, the waters were higher than usual. Rocks that are usually there were buried under a torrent of water.

It was magnificent. I love working with a macro at times. I’ve never used it on water, so it seemed as good a time as any to try. Standing in the stream and trying to get the tripod positioned just so was a challenge, to say the least, but I coerced it into submission.

I always study patterns, as some of you already know. Here, two wisps of water coming off the moss were prominent, and that, I decided, was going to be my focal point.

The results were pleasing, but fair warning: when you are photographing water, it does splash!

I have always loved wildflowers. I used to have a woodland garden when we still lived in New Hampshire. Ladyslippers, Bloodroot, Jack-in-the-Pulpits, Rock cress, Trillium (both alba and vulgaris), Barberry and other beauties were the norm in that garden.

When I walk the path in this gorge, it seems that there are different wildflowers blooming each year. It obviously has to do with the current and past weather.

This year, the Trillium had gone by, but theJack-in-the-Pulpits had not. We had to be careful, as they blend so well into their surroundings.

Arnie helped and added a little light to bring it alive. It was in deep shade, but I wanted it to glow. After all, I am not doing scientific, botanical photography, rather interpretive photography.

So, when you go out, look for patterns in nature, whether clouds, water, or in the latter case, the way light hits a small flower. Don’t be afraid to add a little light if you need it, and always, be patient. We needed patience for the sky, for the surges that produced the little plumes of water I wanted, or for getting the light just right on the flower.

Meanwhile, we’ll be heading out to a wonderful barn with a red roof. This is a scene that works in inclement weather or late-afternoon light.

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