Spring Flowers

I believe spring has finally sprung in Indiana!  It seemed like winter seemed to hang on for an extra long time this year, so when the warm weather finally arrived, it was definitely a welcome change.  Although, as I write this post, the temperature outside is in the 40's today...so maybe spring hasn't quite sprung all the way!  Oh well, at least it's better than snow on the ground and temperatures in the 20's.

Spring brings many things.  In addition to the warmer weather, spring also brings the green grass, planting the garden, mowing the grass, as well as baseball practices and games.  School is almost done and summer vacation is right around the corner.  Everything is new and alive.  The possibilities seem endless!

Spring also brings blossoms on the trees.  In our neighborhood, all of the houses have ornamental pear trees planted in the front yard.  These trees can grow to heights of anywhere between 49-66 feet, and they produce beautiful white flowers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrus_calleryana).  These flowers make the trees look almost completely white, with just a few small bits of green foliage showing through.

These flowers are only out for a short amount of time before the spring winds and rain make them fall like snow from the trees.  This leaves a fairly small window of opportunity to capture the beauty of these little white flowers; however, I was able to snap a few quick pictures before they were completely gone.  I swapped out my zoom lens for a Canon 50mm/f1.8 lens and decided to get a few shots.  I wanted to isolate the flowers as the focal point.  The bokeh turned out nicely and the light was just right to capture that warm, spring feeling.  Very little editing was done to this one.  Adobe Lightroom was used to adjust the tone curve and bump up the clarity and vibrance.  Other than that, this is what the RAW image looked like straight out of the camera.

I hope that wherever you are, you are able to get out and enjoy the spring weather this weekend.  Although it's cooler today, it sure beats snow!

I also wanted to say, 'Happy Mother's Day' to my Mom, my wife, and all of the other Moms out there!  Thank you for all you do and enjoy your special day!