I went to Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens in Belmont, NC in the earlier part of February. Every year from January to March they have an exhibit called "Orchid Spectacular" in an orchid conservatory they just built a few years ago. It showcases absolutely gorgeous orchids along with other tropical plants. It makes you want to develop a green thumb real quick like. Since I love taking shots of flowers, I had a really good time. This time I had a method which worked out very well. I walked through the entire conservatory with a lens that only goes up to 55mm. I took photos of everything I saw that I really enjoyed. I then walked out to get away from the moisture and changed my lens to a 300mm. I walked through a second time and that's when it felt good having a camera in my hands. Being able to pull up a flower from a distance and capturing the detail is wonderful. Each flower has a unique, intricate design that you can really appreciate when you see it up close. Flowers add such vibrant color and beauty to this earth. I'm glad the Lord saw fit to create them to offset some of the dullness or lack of color in life. He knew what He was doing when he put into the minds of men the knowledge and power to cultivate and breed new species out of what had already been created. So, anyway, following are a few of my favorites from the conservatory this year. If you'd like to see more of what the conservatory at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens holds you can follow this link: https://picasaweb.google.com/lisau65/OrchidSpectacularDanielStoweGardensFebruary2011#
