flowers

December Flower Updates

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Here we are with the years end flower updates for December 2025 with thanks to Chris and the ladies at the Bramblesflowers and Flowers to yours . They have very generously provided me with flower subjects for me to capture all through the year and many years before that. I am gracious for their help as I could not do it without them. Thanks as always to Amy for her help in flower rrangements.

That is a wrap for 2025 .... So see you all again for 2026 and we shall see what that year holds for us all?

ye

X

For Colin

November Flower Updates

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Novembers catch of lovely flowers from the Bramblesflowers and Flowers to yours are a treat for the eyes coming this month with the oil painted look and studies in a white box pictures. So thank you to Chris and the ladies at the shop as well as Amy for her input. That is it for this month, see you all again in a few weeks at just around Christmas time.

Bye x

*NEW* Flowers – Oil On Canvas

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Whilst surfing through Youtube online a while back, I fell upon a tutorial that showed one of the new tools in Photoshop that I had not come across before. It turned images into pieces of artwork like oil paintings or watercolours. Its Photoshops answer to AI. Now I have very mixed feelings about the subject of AI. I can see its obvious potential, as well as see the damage it can possibly do to peoples jobs and livelihoods in the long term. That aside, the genie is out of the bottle, and I did like the results. So here are the starter pictures for a new gallery simply called 'Oil on Canvas.' I hope you enjoy it?

*NEW* Flowers – White Box

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This is the second of our new galleries starting this month called 'White Box' and its just that. A white cardboard box with a flower in it. The box was from and packaging of a Toshiba portable hard drive and I thought it looked good for the new gallery. Its still work in progress, but I am enjoying it. Although it is sad to cut up a perfectly good flower, the art justifies itself in the end I hope.

October Flower Updates and the Black and White Section hiatus

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Some changes in store for the flower images, but I shall get to that in a bit. I would like to say a big thank you to Chris and all the staff at Bramblesflowers and Flowers to yours for once again getting a great selection of flowers for Amy and I to photograph. It was also great to Chris at the shop again, mending after his accident. He showed me some images on his phone of the many pins he has in his leg. I am a bit squeamish about such things and its not easy to see them. Still it was good to see him again. Take care mate.

So changes. I have decided to put the Black and White section on a hiatus as I think that section is now better served by the Square B/W gallery. I may make a collective 'best of' page and am toying with the idea to start a High Key gallery. What do you think?

So that is it for this month. Thanks for dropping by and be sure to come back next month.

Bye

X

September Flower Updates

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Thank you as always to the staff at The Bramblesflowers and Flowers to yours for once again getting a great selection of flowers for us to take in our little home studio. This month we had a thistle with several heads on it. While maybe not the prettiest of plants, it does have form and texture that looks good in photos. Get well Chris … being out of action is frustrating I know well. So here wishing you and your leg a speedy repair.

That is it again for this month. Thanks as always to Amy for her help and be sure to drop by at the end of the month for Octobers updates.

Bye

x

August Flower Updates

Bumper selection of flowers this month with three from the shop and two Amy picked up in a hedgerow, including a yellow berry display. As always thanks to Chris and thanks the ladies at The Bramblesflowers and Flowers to yours A thanks also to Amy of course for her ever needed help and flower arrangements. Also I would just like to say I hope you mending Chris … take care mate.

That is it for August, see you all again in September.

x

The Garden 4

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Collected here are the edited highlights from a quick walk around my fathers pride and joy, his garden. There is often new things to find each time we go there and at different times of the year. Enjoy.

July Flower Updates

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I have cut the work load down starting from this month with only three flowers from the shop this month rather than the normal four. There is a good feel to the 'Power 3' concept. Best regards and speedy recovery to Chris and thanks the ladies at The Bramblesflowers and Flowers to yours A thanks also to Amy of course for her ever needed help and organisational skills.

That's it for this July. Please come back in August to visit us again.

Thanks

x

June Flower Updates

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Back again with the flowers this month after last months self imposed break and we have some interesting flowers.

We start off with a peony which is always one of my favourites to snap. Delicate and full bloom when in heated rooms, the look of this flower is always a delight only got three flowers this month from the shop, but Amy brought home a small thistle that she found close to her work place and that made up the fourth flower. At this point of writing the blog the flowers are now going over. So we will be trying something new with them tomorrow involving white spirit (turps) and a fag lighter. If it works I shall post the results up to view in next months blog, so be sure to tune back then.

That's it for this month, but a big thanks then to Chris and the ladies at The Bramblesrist and Flowers to yours And thanks also to Amy of course.

That's it for this June. Please come back in July to see us again.

Thanks

x

March Flower Updates

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There is a whole lot to look at this moth with a bumper display from our good friends at the Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yours. I cannot remember the last time I snapped away at an orchid. Such a lovely flower and with it a bonus seasonal goody. A hyacinth as well. Its a pity you cant smell the sweet perfume from this delicate plant. So once again thank you to the staff at Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yoursand of course Amy for her assistance.

That's it for another month. Please come back at the close of April for more.

Bye for now x

February Flower Updates

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Finishing off for this short month we have another great offering of plant and flowers from our friends at the florist. Including two freesias that are always good to photograph. They especially look great on the square black and white. So thanks again to our friends at the Bramblesrist and Flowers to yours To Chris and the ladies in the shop, as well as a thank you as always to Amy.

That is it for this month. Apologies for the delay and see you all next month.

x

January Flower Updates

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Back on track again with the start of a new year of flower photography with thanks

to everyone at the Bramblesrist and Flowers to yours To Chris and the ladies in the shop.

We had a clematis in flower this month, which always looks good. Such and interesting shape and flowers. This month we have done some extra quirky images through the use of a prism to refract light. It was a heavy thing and awkward for Amy to hold in front of the lens, but it was worth the hassle. I am going to practice again with it sometime in February on another subject and see how it turns out … or .

That's it for this January. Please come back in February to see us again.

Thanks

x

December Flower Updates

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This time of the year seems like one big procession of thankless, but none so more needed for our friends at The Bramblesrist and Flowers to yours who consistently through the year provided top quality and interesting flowers for us to snap. And this month has been no exception. We did get a gerbera again … this time a yellow one … but captured a bit darkly this month on the black and whites. The white images is more a dirty grey for some reason. I did not clean it up in Photoshop as I probably normally would, and just left it as it was. I like it. Thanks then to Amy who has also assisted me with all the flower shoots and made my life a lot easier.

Thats it for this year, so have a great New Years celebration. We will be off to watch a couple of DVDs on Sharks and a glimpse at the lovely Jools Holland with my Mum this years end. So see you all in 2025

Lujon Rael will return …. x

November Flower Updates

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You can’t beat a gerbera …. they are such a photogenic flower. South Africas pride and joy, the gerbera never fails to impress … if a kittle over used sometimes.So thanks then to our friends at The Bramblesrist and Flowers to yours who have provided us with a wonderful selection of flowers to work with this month.They are getting the shop ready for the Christmas silly season, so thanks to Chris and the ladies at the Bramblesrist and Flowers to yours and Amy for her help.

This is a very short month again, but we will be back in December with all new stuff. Apologies once more for the shortness of it. Please don't let this put you off coming back next month.

Until then, take care and see you all again (all three of you!) soon x

Still Life Update

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This month I did manage to do some still life stuff, some of which were left over unedited from September. These are all of vegetables and past their best flowers. As always thank you to Amy for her help.

October Flower Updates

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Our friends at Brambles Florist and Flowers to yours who have provided us again with some great selection of flowers to work with. A special stand out is the kangaroo feet flower. It is so photogenic and easy to edit, the shape is everything. Thanks then to Chris and the ladies at Brambles Florist and Flowers to yours and Amy for her help.

That is it for this month. Apologies for the shortness of it. Please don't let this put you off coming back next month.

Until then, take care and see you soon x

Still Life Update

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This months Still Life images feature the dried up and dying stills from last months flower pictures. I like the quality and textures of decay. As much as rust can look great colour wise on an old piece of iron, so decay, like Autumn, can throw up beautiful hues.

September Flower Updates and the *NEW 'Quirky' gallery

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Well I asked for constructive criticizism and I got it.

Reliable sources asked if I could produce more quirky flower images. So I did …. or like to think I had a try at it. So with this in mind I have created a new section in the flowers folder called appropriately 'Quirky' I looked up the meaning of the word and if I have understood it correctly its something a bit unusual. So this month I have made several images featuring the odd looking gerbera that I obtained and mixed it with some of the other flowers like the wax plant as well as putting them with a collection of dried leaves I have in the studio. You can see the results below with the last five pictures, after the square black and whites. So mixing it up and trying to keep it fresh.

Thanks then this month to our friends, Chris and the laddies at Brambles Florist and Flowers to yours for all their help. Thank you also to Amy for her input and help on the day

Thats it for this month … I hope you will return next month for Octobers update.

X

Flowers – The Garden 3

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Both Amy and I took a whole lot of images from my parents garden this month. I never normally get to see it in August as its June that Amy and I normally visit. So its great to see the garden in its late Summer glory. And here they are for you …