Thursday, May 6, 2010

When Flowers Fade

Yesterday I came across these never-before-seen-the-light-of-day images that I shot last year.

I had done a series of still life photos with fresh tulips and narcissus, and then had put the flowers aside and basically forgot about them for a week or two.

When I was tidying up, I "rediscovered" them and was amazed at how the petals had dried to resemble fine, tissue-thin, watered silk, with the most gorgeous iridescent sheen and glow.

So, of course, I had to photograph them again.

I also loved how, in drying, the flowers took on such interesting "poses" which gave them such character and individual personality.

The one below reminds me of a dancer, pirouetting, arms ups, skirts twirling around. :)

I finished my big project yesterday! And since some of you were kind to inquire, I just sent to one of our international photo reps 2,000 new horticultural and garden images, each captioned with Latin and common names, key worded (tagged), proofread, exported, loaded up on disc, spread-sheeted and mailed. Yay!

And, for another feat, I am attempting to take today OFF. We'll see how that goes!

Have a lovely one yourselves.
xo
– g

21 comments:

  1. Do something special for yourself now that your big project is over! Celebrate! Love the way the flowers still have beauty, though their end draws near. Like aging belles.
    Brenda

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  2. Stunning! You captured the silk, the watercolor shading of the withered petals and leafs. I just _see_ it all in soft silk crèpe, satin and georgette - sewn into some kind of wrap with a rim of velvet - and lots of petal-like parts flowing into each other. I am always sooo inspired by photos of nature, but lack the time to really dye and sew and embroider. Sigh.
    Thank you for your wonderful photography !

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  3. oh, how lovley...and enjoy your day-off...i´m sure you will do it...a wonderful weekend cheers and hugs...i

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  4. wow, so glad to know that you've finally sent it in! i'm sure they'd be delighted with your pieces. and 2000! that IS a big project indeed. bet it's like a great burden lifted off, yes. :)

    these photos look so well-captured, all so professional-esque. way to go, G!

    i hope you're doing well. oh, do take a day off!time to kick back and relax, while sipping on a cup of coffee. :)

    have a beautiful day, g! xx

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  5. Congratulations, Georgianna. What an accomplishement. 2,000 finished and edited photographs. Your client will be so pleased. No one does it better. Your photographs are always stunning.
    Have a wonderful weekend and basque in your achievements.

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  6. The tulips are sooooo faery!!!! So art nouveau. Enjoy the day off you deserve it! Congrats on a job superbly done! Blessings.

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  7. I really love faded or dead flowers, and keep them around the house for a very long time. They are so beautiful and remind me that life is short and mysterious and wonderful ;) I've never seen tulips look like silk though. These are fantastic shots.

    Congratulations on finishing up your project! You deserve a spa day now!

    xoxoxo

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  8. YAY to projects being done!!!!!!!! These are all such gorgeous photographs my friend. Hope you are doing well! m-

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  9. Wow, that sounds like a HUGE HUGE project, congrats on wrapping it up!

    I too love the half dead/barely alive look of flowers,especially the tulips.

    My vases full from the Skagit valley were sitting around forever. In fact, there were more petals on the floor than on the flowers!

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  10. Thank you all so much, my friends!! Ah, a spa day sounds like a good idea! I think Machel and Sylvia should join me! Well, all of you should but they live in my city! xo – g

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  11. Wow, that's a huge project, well done! I love the dark background on those pictures, so different from your usual ones - or am I wrong there? If you pop over to my blog today, you'll find some of your photos featured. Love from London x

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  12. Dearest Georgianna, your photos of drying flowers are really gorgeous! You are really so talented! Yipee and hooray on finsihing your big big project! Congratz! I looking forward to the day you and D are reunited!! Have a wonderful off day! Wishing you a lovely merry happy mother's day weekend! Love to you!

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  13. Oh My! Those are sooooooo beautiful with such interesting shapes and colors. How awesome you finished your project and what a feat it was too. Hope you enjoyed your well deserved day off! ♥

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  14. Congrats on finishing that huge project! Most feel both relief and a bit emptiness!? :) But I'm sure all of them were beautiful. Gorgeous images here too! Especially love the narcissus but all of them are gorgeous. Have a wonderful weekend! xo

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  15. Congratulations on the achievement of that huge project - definitely worthy of a reward, although I have no doubt seeing it mailed off was pretty satisfying in itself!

    I've been offline for a while and have missed your beautiful space and uplifting presence but the advantage is that when I return, it's to a banquet of loveliness instead of just a snack! I have so enjoyed catching up on your recent posts ... these fading beauties - so ethereal and almost other-worldly, that bluebell wood - which reminds me of my mother who loves them, and those absolutely breathtaking dogwwoods... it's a feast. One of my very favourite things though, as a city centre dweller who hears barely a pigeon or sparrow, are your birdsong recordings. Just the perfect accompaniment to browsing your posts - thank you for all of it! k xx

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  16. i love the way they lean in that one shot. stellar photos.

    have a lovely day!

    xo Alison

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  17. Hi Georgianna, your photos of tulips are stunning, I could never thought there might be such a special beauty in flowers getting dried! These silky petals and their whimsical twists are marvellous!
    Zara

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  18. These photos are stunning! They remind me of some of Irving Penn's photos of dead/dying flowers. So different from fresh flowers, but beautiful in their own right.

    Congratulations on finishing your big project!

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  19. my husband brought me some garden flowers to work last week and as i was looking at them sadly fading on my desk yesterday morning i took a second look. i would have never done that before, i would have just thrown them into the trash. but that morning i saw the beauty in the translucent petals of the tulips and the wrinkled and puckered azalea flowers.

    thank you for inspiring me to take a second look at what i would have normally considered garbage. it is really wonderful to see the world through others eyes....

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  20. Really really unusual! It's surprising how FRESH these faded beauties look in your photos. Fresh in their own special way of course...

    Beutiful!
    Ciao!
    Suze

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  21. I hope your day off was at least as beautiful as these pictures. There really are no words to tell you how beautiful I find them. Have you ever seen Maplethorpe's flower images? Better. Definitely. Yours are better.

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