This past weekend I was feeling well enough to get out and shoot, but it was windy and rainy.  Yuck!  So I got out the camera and headed for my own backyard.  My azaleas are in full bloom, and they are just gorgeous.  Luckily the rain didn’t blow all the azalea blooms away like last year!  I couldn’t resist the opportunity for close-up shots of the raindrops on the blooms…

The pink and green colors are some of my favorites of spring.  I tried to capture the masses of colors, but with all the leaves and flowers in focus, the images looked too cluttered.  Then the rain started again.  So I started making blurs.  First I started with small circles of my camera, and a shutter speed of one second.  That gave me enough time to circle several times per shutter click.  I liked the almost multiple exposure feel of the resulting image.  You can still see the flowers, but it’s mostly an abstract blur.

Then I switched to broader strokes with the camera, for a shorter shutter speed.  This gives almost a “river of color” feel.  One thing I’ve learned about playing with blurs is to start moving the camera before you hit the shutter button.  You get more consistent blurs that way.

I love the detail in azalea stamens.  I switched to a small aperture and focused on the tips of the stamens.  The small aperture rendered most of the heart of the azalea in focus, showing off the fun detail in the center of the flower.

All the time I was outside, a certain black and white cat was sitting in the window, watching me.  He didn’t understand why he couldn’t come out and play!  I thought he was so cute looking out at me through the rain-splattered windows.