A lush landscape filled with vibrant woodland sunflowers

I had an overwhelming desire to leave the group and submerge myself in the centre of this sea of wildflowers.

These photographs are from the large set of pictures I captured while on the guided summer wildflower walk of the wildflower meadows at Duke Farms. My wife Bhavna was with me. Near the end of the guided tour, we came upon a meadow that grows on either side of the aptly named Great Meadows Path.

The meadow, lined with Woodland sunflowers (Helianthus divaricatus), felt like a sea. I had an overwhelming desire to leave the group and submerge myself in the centre of this sea of wildflowers, surrounded by nature's magnificence.

Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus)
Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus) · 2 September 2023 · FujiFilm X-T3 · XF150-600mmF5.6-8 R LM OIS WR
Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus)
Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus) · 2 September 2023 · FujiFilm X-T3 · XF150-600mmF5.6-8 R LM OIS WR

Bumblebee on a Woodland Sunflower

This photograph is another from the large set of pictures I captured while on the guided summer wildflower walk of the wildflower meadows at Duke Farms. My wife Bhavna was with me, sharing in the glamour of the surroundings. Near the end of the guided tour, we entered a meadow that grows on either side of the Great Meadows Path near the bottom of Ginkgo Lane. The meadows, lined with Woodland sunflowers (Helianthus divaricatus), made me wish for a similar meadow in my backyard. Bees filled the air with sound as they buzzed between the flowers, sipping nectar. At that moment, I felt an overwhelming desire to leave the group and submerge myself in the centre of this sea of wildflowers, surrounded by nature's uncomplicated magnificence.

Bee on Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus)
Bee on Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus) · 2 September 2023 · FujiFilm X-T3 · XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR

My Fuji X-T3 has a 26-megapixel sensor. The quality of the images amazed me, especially the sharpness retained even after significant cropping.

Monarch butterfly perched on a cluster of pink wildflowers

One Saturday in September, Bhavna and I attended a guided nature walk at the Duke Farms in Hillsborough

Over the summer, I was pretty manic with my photography. From looking at my Adobe Lightroom catalogue, I made almost 2000 photographs between May and September. I shared some of these on this blog and social media.

This behaviour is normal for me. I get these bursts of creative excitement that then fade. As I post this entry, it's the last week of December, but a quick look at the Adobe Lightroom catalogue shows that I have taken only 500 photos since the beginning of October.

Perhaps because I was overwhelmed with the quantity, most of them needed to be processed. I am rediscovering them as I prepare for my Best of The Year post for 2023.

One Saturday in September, Bhavna and I attended a guided nature walk at the Duke Farms in Hillsborough. On this Summer Wildflower Walk, our guide took us around the Duke Farms, teaching us about the basics of flowering plant identification and the ecological connections that tie these plants to the meadows and woodlands they grace.

Early September was near the beginning of the fall migration of the Monarch butterflies back to their native homes in South America. Near the end of the tour, we explored a large meadow, and I was lucky enough to photograph this sole Monarch butterfly. The flowers on which the butterfly rests have fine, spiky petals, suggesting they might be a variety of wild aster, a common nectar source for Monarchs.