For the Love of Nature, Up Close

For my 16th birthday, my dad gave me my first "serious" camera-- a fine Minolta 35mm SLR with a pretty good zoom lens that also turned out to be remarkably good for macro photography.

Extreme close-up of the veins in the petal of a red poppy

I suppose I have always been a bit of a "nature nerd," preferring to wander around in the woods over playing loud games with my peers... so it was no surprise that while my friends went off and took pictures of their parties and adventures, I headed into nature with my new camera. 

Back then, of course, we were using film... so my exploits where somewhat limited by the state of my pocketbook... mostly boosted by mowing lawns and painting fences.

The tiny "inner worlds" of nature fascinate me.

Even as a 6-year old, I would lie on the sand on the beach and try to "see" what each grain of sand looked like.

In nature, it was the geometric patterns that fascinated me-- the way a snowflake wasn't merely "a cold white blob" but an intricate crystalline formation. Then there were the patterns found in flowers, some looking like the skin of exotic alien creatures; some looking like complete landscapes on a strange planet. The seeds of a sunflower, arranged in geometric patterns. The forest of tiny hairs on the back of a stinging nettle leaf. 

There was just so much to see!

I was always much better at taking pictures of objects and animals than people, so I have spent 40-odd years looking deep into these tiny natural worlds, trying to capture their intricacies in an image. 

Extreme close-up of the heart of a dark purple poppy, with dew drops and pollen mixing

I'm by no means an expert macro photographer-- I just have a good time seeing what comes up. In some sense, it is a meditation, of sorts.

Writing... and the Digital Age

Without a doubt, the advent of digital cameras made my hobby both more fun, as well as less expensive. Even though I spent more than $1000 on my first digital camera, the chance to photograph and instantly see the outcome was a wondrous experience, for me.

As a writer-- mostly online, these days-- I always felt that it was best to break up blocks of text with images. Where many content creators head off to find relevant images online, I have always chosen to use my own nature photos. Whereas they may not always be "subject matter relevant," they have become a bit of a "trademark" for my articles... and it seems to me that the outcome is pretty decorative.

Using my own photos also means I never have to worry about permissions and copyright issues... and since my library numbers tens of thousands of images, I doubt I'll ever "run out!"

I do occasionally get a nice message or two, saying that my articles are very "restful" and calm... and my natural images "add something" to the overall presentation. 

Whereas I don't use the photos for the purpose of "getting kudos," it is nice to know that they are appreciated. 

Anyway, that's the story behind "why I am always using those photos in my posts."

How about YOU? Do you use your own photos, or do you mostly reach for stock photos and graphics? Or some of each? 

(All images and text by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is original content, created expressly for Steemit)