I sincerely hope you and your family have been well and safe amidst the Covid-19 virus outbreak.  It's amazing how the world has changed in just a few months.  Fortunately, I have known only one person to have contracted it and after a month in the hospital including two weeks on a ventilator, they made it through OK.  

My wife and I have taken the stay at home suggestions to heart.  Being retired, it hasn't meant a huge change in our lifestyle but it is getting a bit old.  Nonetheless, even as North Carolina opens, we'll continue to listen to the experts and stay put.  But I must admit, I sure would like to go to some restaurants and movies again.  It does concern me that states are opening too quickly and that the virus will storm back.  If you venture out, for the sake of others and the medical community, please practice social distancing and wear a face mask.

In terms of photography, I haven't been doing much opting to try to stay away from other hikers and possible crowds.  But if I find a good weather day, I may head out to some of places where I know I won't run into people.  Before the virus really hit I managed to get to a small nearby waterfall that I've never been to before, Key Falls.  For this waterfall to be photogenic, it has to be seen after some heavy rains.  This was taken about two days after some rains.

Key Falls

The area around the falls is very small and tight.  This is about the only decent composition I could get but I feel it still works.  I needed to use my 17-35mm wide angle lens to get the entire falls in frame.  Even though this photo was taken in early February, the waterfall is surrounded by thick rhododendrons, which provide a nice wrapping of green.

During the initial weeks of the virus outbreak, I just wasn't feeling like photography.  I thought I'd try some still life but with florists being closed and wanting to avoid food markets, my creativity for coming up with a composition wasn't good enough.

But then spring came and my wife's flowers started popping up.  That motivated me a bit to try some floral still life images.  This first image are some roses from my wife's garden.  I'm still experimenting with still life compositions.  While it may seem easy, trust me, it's not.  This is a very simple arrangement.  And, of course, the flowers are red and white, which for me, are rather difficult to light.  I would have preferred more of a pastel color.  But I'm happy overall with the result.  To finish off the post processing, I took the photo into Topaz Studio and applied one of the abstract presets.  But I really toned it down trying to add just a bit of the effect.  Both of these photos were shot with my Nikon 200mm macro lens.

Roses

This second photo is a simple branch off one of our azalea bushes.  For the composition, I tried to make it look somewhat tree-like. Lighting was fairly straightforward.  These two photo were lit by two Nikon SB-910 speed lights in soft boxes.

Azaleas

The Blue Ridge Parkway will be opening up this weekend.  I will likely head up to an area north of Asheville known as Craggy Gardens in a few weeks to photograph the beautiful blooming Catawba Rhododendrons.  Framing them with the rolling Blue Ridge Mountains in the background is such a gorgeous sight.  I would like to go out to many more places but with social distancing and needing to go alone, it will limit my locations.  I generally like to go out with a friend not only fun but also safety.  Please stay safe and well.  I'd love to hear from you on how you're dealing with the virus and what photography you've been able to do.  Drop me a note.

Thanks for visiting.  Reid