A Bluebonnet Expedition

I went back into the Hill Country on a Bluebonnet expedition yesterday and took Mom with me to enjoy the beautiful weather. By the time I'd finished taking pictures it was hot, but no less beautiful for that. We stopped at the Bluebonnet Café in Marble Falls on the way home him and scored some pie - we didn't bother with lunch. That makes the pie that much better! 

The expedition wiped both of us out. Mother crashed when I got her back to Karen's and I succumbed after turning on the TV and stretching out in my recliner - immediately after. I woke up a little after midnight, having missed all of prime time, Letterman, and Ferguson. But, not having to conform to anyone else's schedule, I started working on the pictures I'd taken.

These first 7 here are HDR (high dynamic range) images taken with the "little" Canon (G6). 

I'm still experimenting with HDR; I like a lot about it but there are things I don't care for as well. One minute I love the eye-popping colors, and the next, they strike me as over-saturated.

I especially like the clear blue skies, but the color transition is not smooth. I'm hoping those are things in post-processing I can figure out how to tweak. I'll get it eventually.

I'm going to keep my commentary to a minimum since there are so many pictures. All these were all taken near Inks Lake in Burnet County. Tomorrow's post will be between Inks Lake and Marble Falls.

I spent a fair amount of time this morning trying to identify the wildflowers that I didn't already know. The yellow flowers in the picture above are Greenthread (Thelesperma filiform).

The bright red and yellow daisy-like flowers scattered in with the bluebonnets in many of these shots are Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella).

The passenger door of my pickup is open. Mom couldn't stand being so close to the flowers without getting at them. I turned back towards the truck several times and caught her getting out to pick them.

 Bluebonnets and an Indian Blanket.

Enough HDR for now; back to the "big" Canon.

The purple one in the lower left, above and the one featured below, have defied my attempts at identification. If anyone has an idea of what they are, please leave a comment.

I was pretty sure this purple clump was Phlox, and it turned out to be Goldeneye Phlox (Phlox roemeriana). So I was right, and I learned something about it. That's a good deal any day.

Sometimes I like to apply an "art" filter to very complex images. It's as though the "photo" is overwhelming with all the detail. When you trick your mind into thinking of it as a "painting", you allow yourself to appreciate its complexity and study it as you would a painting. Would that I could paint; I haven't the patience.

 There are about 200 species of Indian Paintbrush; as near as I can tell, these are Castilleja indivisa 

 They're often found with the Bluebonnets and their counterpoint is welcome in any picture.

In detail or in grander landscapes, they simply belong together. When you see Bluebonnets without Paintbrush, your first thought is, "Where are the Indian Paintbrush?"

One of the problems I have is seeing what I'm shooting with the G6 LCD in bright sunlight.

Because I don't usually zoom in very close, preferring to keep the shots wide enough to crop afterwords, it's not a big problem.

With the 10D, I use its viewfinder to frame my shots and have a better idea of what I might find when I dump the images to my computer at home.

When I've got HDR figured out, I'll be able to use the 10D for those as well.

 Meanwhile, it's easier to shoot them with the G6. But it'll all work out.

 Bluebonnets with Indian Paintbrush and Indian Blanket.

 Encore.

I haven't mentioned the cactus is so many of these pictures. They bloom a bit later, preferring solo performances I guess.

They are, of course, Prickly Pear (Opuntia macrorhiza) and have beautiful flowers. I don't know why I never have the urge to embark on a Prickly Pear expedition. . .

I like the layout of this one, like a group shot. Bluebonnets down front, then you tall grass-like guys line up in front of the Cedar (Ashe Juniper). You, Rock, just stand there in back and be still.