Hat Pins as Trees

I like to imagine a world where these Hat Pins are trees (aka Eriocaulon compressum Lam.; or Flattened Pipewort). I created that world -- just a little -- this afternoon. Spending a little time with these fascinating plants makes one forget all of the hysteria of the world we normally inhabit.



These plants naturally grow in the water. We haven't had normal water since 2004 so there are a lot of them growing on dry lake bed. They delineate the normal water line very nicely. Here a vast field appears as I lowered the camera down into their canopy.



ABOVE and BELOW: I was trying to capture some of the puffy little clouds in the distance.



BELOW: I enhanced the colors of the sky to make this land appear whimsical. This is my favorite shot of the day.



BELOW: Shooting directly into the sun creates a cool effect. .. but it also creates extra work for the photographer. . .who has to adjust the image before it looks like much more than a washed out frame. This turned out nice.



And. . . here's the spoiler alert. . . BELOW: My size 12 loafer standing on some of the 'trees.' Most of the Hat pins are barely 6" tall. Those in the water are much larger but -- alas -- harder to get to.