Birdsfoot and Wood Betony

Two of my favorites this time of year are Birdsfoot Violet and Wood Betony.  Both were in fine form along the Tolleston Dunes trail.

The orange and violet are a perfect contrast. Look closely at the stamen, it appears to be sticking its tongue out at me.

One of the challenges in getting good up close photos of flowers is keeping everything in focus. One tip is to look for instances where the subjects all in the same plane, as these three Birdsfoot Violets are.

This Wood Betony is still developing but is already taking on a nice shape.

Some subjects really lend themselves well to an overhead perspective. In the case of this Wood Betony the top down shot really highlights the unique “propeller” shape of the flowers.

Boom!

And…. Boom, everything is green!  I love the way it is almost like throwing a light switch in this area and what was just a week ago mostly bare trees is now vibrant green.  And Blue!  One of the treats in the western part of the park are the Lupine.  Two trails in particular are really good for viewing them, the Miller Woods Trail and the Tolleston Dunes Trail.  I hit the later last weekend and could only get a little over 2/3 of a mile in because of all the stopping to take photos.

I will start with some of the Lupine and then show some of the other highlights in following posts.