The world is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper. ~ W.B.Yeats
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. Another day of wabi sabi introspection and appreciation.
The world is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper. ~ W.B.Yeats
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. Another day of wabi sabi introspection and appreciation.
When suffering overwhelms me I will breathe in and leave an opening in this moment for the joy that lies just behind it. ~ Philip Martin
This is a dying leaf amidst all the other green leaves. And yet, I think it is one of the most beautiful in the garden, with its translucent creamy whites streaked with purple veining.
Drooping towards the earth, the weight of the leaf is too heavy for its stem. But in letting go, in its slow motion drift towards the earth — which it will soon be a part of — it offers a certain grace, a dignity, and beauty — wabi-sabi beauty.
It’s a wabi-sabi kind of day.
These bright, beautiful blossoms are long-lasting, adding bright hues of purple for late July and August. Coneflowers have great character in their many stages of growth and decline, and then finally decay. A grace and posture accompany the coneflower through each of its life stages – bud, brightly petaled flower, dying flower, and the lovely seedhead.
I never tire of the sway of orange, purple, pink — and they make me smile.
It is hard not to make friends with this patch of flowers.
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is spending every available hour in one of the many area gardens these days — sometimes with camera in hand, sometimes relaxing on a blanket spread on the grassy hills, sometimes just looking, gazing, and taking it all in. Trying to hold onto a special moment a bit longer than a moment.

Green Light Macro © 2011 Bo Mackison
From within or from behind, a light shines through us upon things and makes us aware that we are nothing, but the light is all. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Photography is art using light as its medium. Without light, there would be no photographs. I was quite awe-struck by the beauty of the light in the many greens – highlighted in the low angled sunlight. So many shades in one green leaf, interspersed lights and shadows.
One should sit quietly and look at a garden. What you see depends on what you bring to it. ~ Sobin Yameda
Composition can be rooted in contrasts: light and dark, bright and shadowy, straight and curved, diagonal and circular, near and far.
Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. ~ Rachel Carsen
Focusing on the beauty I find in the gardens has become a life-enhancing gift. How can one’s spirits not soar, one’s mood not lift, surrounded by the many colors, textures, the sensory experiences that make one feel fully alive.
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC.
A couple of days ago I took an hour’s walk through Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison. I had exactly one free hour between appointments. As I drove past the gardens, I could see from the street that there were deep colors and textures throughout the gardens. I did not need to make much of a conscious decision — seemed as if my car naturally swung into the lot and parked in its familiar parking space.
Because I bring my basic photo gear wherever I travel, my camera was on the passenger seat, ready for action. Considering I had exactly an hour — no dawdling — I took only my 12 inch diffuser in case I needed to shield a flower or two from the mid-day light. Though I typically shoot at least some of my photos in the gardens with my macro lens, my 50 mm prime was already on the camera, and so I made a quick decision to work differently — I would walk through the gardens and capture more compositions, more textures, more paths and bridges for some metaphor projects I’ve been planning, and fewer macro-photographs. I tucked my tripod through my camera bag loop, just in case, and off I went.
Since I carried different gear, I looked for different sorts of photographs — that felt very freeing — and I felt as if I were seeing through “new” eyes. When I walked near this grouping of coleus, zinnias, and other late blooming summer flowers, the colors, textures, and composition caught my attention — and refused let go!
I was quite transfixed by the variety of purples and oranges, the crinkled leaves in contrast to the long, twisting petals, and there were even a few daisy types for that touch of simplicity.
It wasn’t until I took these photographs into the studio early this morning that I really connected with many of the of the details in this photo. I wasn’t happy with a rather dark clump of leaves in the lower right corner of the photograph – it pulled my attention towards the corner, but there wasn’t much visual interest. I experimented, investigated, curious to see what would happen as I worked with the Nik Color Efex software. When I applied the Infrared Film setting to the photo, I loved the contrast of the B/W mixed with the bright flowers.
The composition stood out, the contrasting colors took on added depth against the partly grayscale background, and the textures popped right off the screen.
I thought I would share this photo — a departure from many of the botanicals I shoot.
Any reaction — positive, not so positive, unsure? I’d love to know what you think.
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is investigating post-processing techniques with Nik Software and perhaps having way too much fun to call her photography to-do list for today “work”.
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