You wouldn’t believe the terrible condition this group of flowers was in.  In fact, this particular petal was one of the few that wasn’t completely wilted.  The vast majority of petals had already fallen to the ground as this photo was taken in early October and most blooming plants were WAY past their prime.  I was quite surprised to stumble upon this small cluster of vivid flowers in a local park, but the overall scene was not pretty.

Positioning the tripod for a close photo was difficult.  On a few early attempts, one of the tripod’s feet shook the plant during my setup process, causing most of the water droplets to fall off of the original petal I was trying to photograph.  On a different attempt, I touched a petal to prevent two from intersecting…. this smudged the droplets and completely ruined the picture.  I was also working against time, as bright morning sun is prone to burning dew and droplets off quickly.

It’s funny the small, yet important lessons you learn while photographing subjects like these.  In this case: Handle with care, Be very mindful during tripod setup, and remember that many photographic opportunities are fleeting.

Water droplets on Flower Petal