In the San Gabriel Valley, you do not have to travel far in order to see the wonders of nature – Arcadia Arboretum, The Huntington Library, the Los Angeles Zoo, or Arroyo Seco in Altadena, just to name a few. You can just head over, take your camera, and shoot away. This is when you can get the best practice – shooting relatively still objects, understanding and adjusting to different types of lighting, and experimenting with angles and perception. In addition to that, you can embrace natural beauty. Luckily for me, I do not always have to hop in my car and drive to these areas. I can open the back door and step outside.
Before purchasing the house, Taro and I were impressed with the array of plants, flowers, and herbs that filled the backyard. Now it is our yard and garden, a place where we can hold BBQs and let Peanut roam around freely to explore. Each time we go out there, we discover more and more. First it was the cat nip bush; Peanut was just rolling, a little bit of heaven for him. Then, during the summer, we discovered we had two peach trees which, by the way, produced amazing, delicious, juicy fruit! Recently, two gigantic stalks emerged. Taro and I realized that thanks to our bionic squirrel friends, they planted sunflowers. The sunflowers are so tall – taller than me, which means they are over five feet in height!
So whenever I want to get in tune with nature or just practice shooting, I just step outside and enjoy.
I randomly took this picture of a blue jay which flew out of our bush. Low and behold, it is carrying a peanut. No worries, not my Peanut though!
To leave you with something that embraces nature (the English major is coming out here):
“I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” by William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils,
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay;
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves besides them danced, but they
Outdid the sparkling waves in glee;
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company;
I gazed -and gazed- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought;
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
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