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Hung Out To Dry
e6filmuser
Registered Users Posts: 3,378 Major grins
Lizard Orchid Himantoglossum hircinum.
I first came across this, to be accurate, nearly tripped over it, in a meadow in the French Alps. I seemed to be the shrivelled remnants of some plant. However, close examination showed it (two plants within a metre or two) to be very much alive but possibly bleached by the sun.
My plant is grown under glass in England. The colours are subdued but rather more intense than the wild ones I saw.
This species in the same genus as the Giant Orchid, posted recently. The Giant Orchid flowers from January to May, the Lizard from May to July. There are some colonies, which I have not seen, of the Lizard Orchid in southern England
The flowers of this species show extreme morphology for a European species but there are many weird and wonderful forms in orchids from warm or hot climates. I see it as a potential subject for art or photography.
These were all daylight shots, EM-1, probably all f11 or 16, typically at around 1/100, ISO 400 or 800, hand-held. (Those streamers are a nightmare in any trace of breeze).
Should anyone be inspired to obtain such an orchid, here is a health warning. The CITES regulations are fearsome for orchids. Any imported without the proper paperwork are likely to be confiscated (probably destroyed to "protect" them). Only cultivated, not collected wild, plants should be obtained. I don't know much about outside the EU but inside, cultivated orchids can be traded freely without CITES paperwork, but do check your own local regulations.
Harold
I first came across this, to be accurate, nearly tripped over it, in a meadow in the French Alps. I seemed to be the shrivelled remnants of some plant. However, close examination showed it (two plants within a metre or two) to be very much alive but possibly bleached by the sun.
My plant is grown under glass in England. The colours are subdued but rather more intense than the wild ones I saw.
This species in the same genus as the Giant Orchid, posted recently. The Giant Orchid flowers from January to May, the Lizard from May to July. There are some colonies, which I have not seen, of the Lizard Orchid in southern England
The flowers of this species show extreme morphology for a European species but there are many weird and wonderful forms in orchids from warm or hot climates. I see it as a potential subject for art or photography.
These were all daylight shots, EM-1, probably all f11 or 16, typically at around 1/100, ISO 400 or 800, hand-held. (Those streamers are a nightmare in any trace of breeze).
Should anyone be inspired to obtain such an orchid, here is a health warning. The CITES regulations are fearsome for orchids. Any imported without the proper paperwork are likely to be confiscated (probably destroyed to "protect" them). Only cultivated, not collected wild, plants should be obtained. I don't know much about outside the EU but inside, cultivated orchids can be traded freely without CITES paperwork, but do check your own local regulations.
Harold
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Comments
I know you probably don't have access to computer.....;o)
.....but if you did...
...the green leaf in bottom left corner....creating a triangle....is a distraction and cloning candidate. IMHO.
Cheers!
Thanks. I have access but not to Photoshop, the C-Drive being at critical volume on this one. I tried an alternative the other day and took ages to deal with the tiniest of coloured highlights. I will get back to this image when I get a proper set-up.
If you want to play with the image, be my guest.
Harold
Thanks Harold! As you know.....a person only takes time to do this or comment suggestions because they LOVE 95% of the image.....may not be needed....but my own personal eccentricities are satisfied:D
Thanks for taking the time. I owe you a beer!
I had a go, using the limited tools in my Topaz plugin (no blur tool) and didn't get nearly the result you did.
If the plant obliges again this year, I can do some stereos and get in really close for some of the flower detail.
Harold
Brian V.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/
http://www.lordv.smugmug.com/
Thanks, Brian.
Yes, I can't see how such long extensions are of evolutionary advantage.
Harold