Flowers and Farmer's Markets

It may not feel very springy outside, but it is now officially Spring!  My favourite time of year.  The crocuses are blooming, the farmer's markets are larger, and full of beautiful looking fruits and vegetables.  I'm so excited.  All of these photographs were taken in Prospect Park, and the Farmer's Market in Grand Army Plaza the past couple of days.

Other than today, I got to walk in the park every day this week.  Six out of seven is not bad at all.  I'm ready for warmth.  Sunshine.  More flowers.  The plants on my sill are even starting to grow!

What's your favourite part about Spring?

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Longwood Gardens Part 1

 

Longwood Gardens is a stunning former Dupont family estate in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, not too far away from where I grew up.  There are acres upon acres of pruned outdoor gardens, stunning indoor conservatories, fields, fountains, and pruned fruit and vegetable gardens.

They also feature some special exhibits- there is one permanent installation about the gorgeous organ in the conservatory ballroom.  A temporary exhibition while I was there was about perfumes. It told how different scents are extracted from flowers and mixed together.

The indoor conservatories really are spectacular.

 

This flower (below) was one of my particular favourites.  My favourite colour has changed probably 75 times over the years.  When I was really little it was green, then purple, then burgundy, then red, then black... lately I've really been liking baby blue.  I don't know why.  There's something inherently pleasant about it.

 

Here... have some more lovely flowers!

More to come on Saturday :)

Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, USA

The Mighty Monarch

Ooh, pretty butterflies on butterfly bushes.  

I definitely walked all over a person's lawn while taking these photos, but this sight was too gorgeous to resist.  Tresspassing has to happen sometimes, when beautiful photos are on the line!

These are definitely old at this point... I took them in mid-September, which doesn't feel like very long ago, but was actually two monthes ago.  Wow, time flies.  This blog is almost a year old!  Ridiculous.

ALSO.  Kudos to all of you who caught the Venture Bros. reference in the title.  I'm so excited for the season 4.5 finale it's preposterous.  For those of you who haven't ever watched the show, check it out.  It's a bit of Adult Swim brilliance wrapped up in more cultural references than South Park and The Simpsons put together.  But, like, seriously.  Venture Bros and Archer on FX have replaced the aforementioned as the funniest shows on TV, in my opinion.  If you value my opinion, you should check them out...

"Butterfly kisses.  I learned them in prison."

Beach Haven, New Jersey, USA

My Little Pony

 

 

 

My Little Pony was one of my absolute favourite TV shows as a kid.  I watched it whenever possible.  I was one of those children who would wake up at like 6AM, hours before I actually had to be up for school, just so that I could watch some of my morning cartoons.  Scooby Doo, Princess Guinevere and the Jewel Riders, The Smurfs, and a few other classics aired really early in the morning like that.  One of those other classics was My Little Pony.

I also had a bunch of the toys.  I wasn't a spoiled rotten kid- it was just one of my preferred types of play. Pony parades occurred every few days.  I'd make my parents and friends sit and watched as I moved them around a room, one by one, while singing little songs.  It was silly, but I loved it.  And I wonder how on earth I turned out to be an actress......

This i one of those little toys from my childhood, posing in my parents' gardens in early September.

West Grove, Pennsylvania, USA

Black Eyed Susan and Such

I know, I know.  More flowers.  I'm always posting photographs of flowers.

But I love  them, and they are just so darn fun to photograph.  Flowers are so delicious, so happy, so gorgeous... inspirational in every way.  And their time for this year is pretty much done, unless I go to a greenhouse or something.  Which I will do at some point.  So enjoy some of the fabulous flora from Beach Haven this past summer.

Beach Haven, New Jersey, USA

Photographer Feature: Allison Cavanaugh

Allison Cavanaugh hopes to mimic the travels of a nomad someday. She is currently majoring in art and communications and hopes to make photography a part of her career. She finds conceptual photography to be particularly satisfying but will shoot at just about anything in her way. 

Refraction

Silence

Arachnawhat

Scream

Lily

Silence was part of a series on censorship she did about two years ago.  Arachnawhat is more recent, it's part of a tarantula series she just started, featuring her tarantula, and Scream is part of a recent mud series.

You can find out more about Alison's photography at 

http://www.facebook.com/?sk=messages&tid=1380684485897#!/pages/Allison-Cavanaugh-Photography/140168599356215?ref=ts 

On a completely unrelated note... I put up some polls on the side of the page.  Please take a moment to vote.  Thank you!!