Morning Walk | Venus Looking Glass?

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I think I’m in the right genus, but haven’t keyed it to species yet. Those curved anthers should make it relatively easy to distinguish from its kin. UPDATE: Thanks to Rurality for the dope slap and correct ID: American Bellflower.I had to shoot with the lens at 200mm because these were blooming up a steep shale bank at the end of the valley. The dynamic range from lightest to darkest was too great for the medium to capture so the highlights are blown; would have been a good time to take RAW and use Photomatix to balance light against shadow. But I was too lazy to think through this.

I love bringing images back and posting them while they are still “warm” from the field, though it’s not quite as much fun having to upload blog-size and enlarged versions to Photobucket as it would be if I had a permanent place for them. Maybe this will happen soon. Sigh.

Larger images is here.

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fred
fred

Fred First holds masters degrees in Vertebrate Zoology and physical therapy, and has been a biology teacher and physical therapist by profession. He moved to southwest Virginia in 1975 and to Floyd County in 1997. He maintains a daily photo-blog, broadcasts essays on the Roanoke NPR station, and contributes regular columns for the Floyd Press and Roanoke's Star Sentinel. His two non-fiction books, Slow Road Home and his recent What We Hold in Our Hands, celebrate the riches that we possess in our families and communities, our natural bounty, social capital and Appalachian cultures old and new. He has served on the Jacksonville Center Board of Directors and is newly active in the Sustain Floyd organization. He lives in northeastern Floyd County on the headwaters of the Roanoke River.

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  1. Fred – beautiful pic………I recently upgraded to a Nikon D40x (the D200 is a bit out of my budget) – it came with an 18-55mm lens and I am absolutely enthralled with it – my macro shots are exquisite and I’m eager to get out & try the 55-200mm lens I bought………This replaces my 5700 & my 8800 – I need to try to sell these 2………I intend to keep my very first Nikon – a 3.2MP as I use it to shoot my grand-daughter as it fits in my pocket & she doesn’t see me taking her pics & the pics are so delightful………I wonder if our upgrades will ever end!!!!!!