This week didn’t lend itself well to taking many photos, so photography was jammed in this weekend. Rocket Kid, the Nikon, and I took a short hike at South Mountain (the largest municipal park in the country).
I had two main struggles with photos at South Mountain this time:
1- The plant life wasn’t amazing. I expect that in June and July (and the next few months after that), but at the front end of May with a relatively cool April, I thought there’d be more colorful signs of life, even here in the desert. And while I do love shooting dead and dead-looking plants, the live, vibrant ones are nice, too.
2- It was breezy, which meant the few flowers that had dared to come out were difficult to capture.
But this weekly post is about the process, not about perfection, so I’ll share with you what I have.
First, a collection of cactus spines. Because I love cactus spines. With a flower or two in there that don’t blow in the wind so much.
Next, a couple of flowers that turned out OK. Not as sharp as I’d like (unlike the spines, which were plenty sharp hahaha), but better than I expected, given the breeze. (Also, a side note about the breeze: there will be weeks on end when the air is still and hot and we will desperately wish for a breeze. While it’s inconvenient for macro of flowers, the breeze is delightful.)
The lead photo is the best of both worlds: spines and flowers. I say this every May, but I love saguaros in bloom.
It was warmer than it’s been for a while, there’s no shade on the trail, and Rocket Kid was getting hungry. So he laid down on a table at the trailhead while we waited for The Climbing Daddy who took a longer hike while we hiked and photographed. (Taking a “real” hike and taking photographs while hiking are mutually exclusive.)
Since I had the extension tubes on, I took a close up shot.
A couple of shots from slightly higher elevation. The mountain with the city in the background.
And one more that well-captured the vibrance of the sky.
Not my best outing but not my worst, either.
Also this weekend, Rocket Kid and I went to Mesa Community College’s Rose Garden. He had the Nikon for a good portion of the time (and likewise, many of my shots are from my phone). We had a great time, and I’m impressed with some of the shots he got!
Click here to see April’s inaugural outing and to sign up to see our recent shots!
