Photos of Cacti and Succulents
 

Am fascinated by the forms and shapes of these unusual plants and have gathered a collection of photos and posted it on my blog, and No, I don't grow them for lack of space and time. The post is a bit picture heavy, so I hope you don't mind.

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2480/3...5a53e61d_t.jpg

Many more photos here:
Serendipity and Orchids: Cacti and Succulents

Beautiful - fabulous photography!

Thanks ever so much, Sonya.

Amazing pictures. I wish I had your talent in photography.

Anyone can do photography, Bud. It's just a matter of learning and practice. Ten thousand hours makes you an expert at anything, you know:{)

That is neat! The spine imprints are tricking my eyes - it looks three dimensional.

Thanks, Nastia.

Absolutely amazing photography Ron! Looks like you really had fun with the geometric patterns and hard lines found in that group of plants. Really a very cool montage!

Edit: Ron, do you use a tripod? I'm curious about how you get such crisp images.

Hi Steve,
On some of them I did use a tripod. The Devonian Botanic Gardens in Edmonton allowed that, but the Manito City Gardens does not. I tend to shoot on bright days there and do use a monopod at times (allowed). I usually shoot at a higher ISO and higher shutter speed but even then it can hard to get good images.

I learned a cool trick from my husband. When I don't have access to a tripod, I carry a 1/4-20 bolt with a string attached to it. The bolt fits into a threaded hole and stepping onto a string creates tension on the camera. This helps to keep it steady. Obviously it doesn't replace a tripod but is very handy for some of the shots. It has been helpful on some of the strenuous hikes where I didn't want to carry a tripod.