Calm Under Tension Blog

How Can Photographing the Same Plant or Flower Repeatedly Over Time Produce Different Results?

8/28/2013

Have you ever tried challenge your creative photography skills by photographing the same subject over and over? Bet you thought you'd get the same boring results each time, huh? Or, I bet you thought you really weren't creative so you just didn't try.

"If you think you are beaten, you are." -- C.W. Longenecker

Let me show you one way you can achieve a slew of results for one single object.

I was given some Blue Morning Glory seeds by Peg when she sent out our 2nd Quarter LittleAlters2013 list of who we make an alter for next. I planted them and watched them grow with deep amazement. It's the color that drives me crazy (in a good way) to the point of taking their photo nearly every day. Having never given myself such a photography subject challenge, I was amazed at how my fascination with the plant, the blooms, the elements affect upon the plant, and it's own transition from birth to death, all impacted my photos giving me a huge variety of results from just a single subject.

Morning Glories in Grandpa Ott Purple

You see, I've grown morning glory from seed before. The last time I grew them I had a house and lots of land to plant my herb, veggie, and flower gardens. I grew a morning glory variety that I believe is an heirloom variety called Grandpa Ott's. They are a delicious and rich purple color. Again because of the color, I really, really enjoyed watching them bloom. I didn't take many photographs of them that year, but every day I sat on my patio I admired them deeply. The color reached the depths of my soul. The photo on the far right with the pear tomatoes is the truest to their color.

I always wished I had planted more seeds and had them en masse like you see growing on the sides of the roads and out in the wild. Mind, I'm ignoring their invasiveness.

Wild White Morning Glory Found Somewhere in Seattle

Photo Set: One Subject, Many Faces (er, Blooms)

So, what?! You might be saying. How do I get that with MY photos?

How could one single plant ever be so varied and different?

First, I encourage you to click on any photo in the grouping of my blue morning glory blossom collections below. What do you see?

If you study them, you'll see that one object can provide a multitude of inspiration be it through:

Time - Of day (morning, midday, evening), Of Month, Of Season
Weather effects (rain, dew, sun, shade, etc.)
Lack (of water in this case, but it could be negative space, color, surrounding)
A snapshot in time or point in the process (growth process in this case)
Angle/perspective (up, down, front, back, straight, side)
Quantity - one to many (single bloom, a few blooms, the entire pot of blooms)

Observe too, that nearly every picture in my set originates from a place where I'm standing. This is known to some as "where I stand". #fromwhereistand is a fantastic hashtag used on Instagram. Click on the picture below for some brilliant examples.