Antelope-horns milkweed buds
Click for greater clarity.
Sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, or so they say. And in the movie Sunset Blvd. the character of Norma Desmond says: “All right, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up.” So now the Mr. Schwartzman who readily brought you a close-up of a blackfoot daisy in the last post also brings you this close view of the buds of antelope-horns, Asclepias asperula, which appeared with some blackfoot daisies two posts ago. I’ll call your attention to the red star incised on each green and pudgy pentagonal bud; note also the long, stiff, folded leaves that characterize this species.
For those of you who are interested in photography as a craft, points 1 and 2 in About My Techniques are relevant to this photograph.
© 2012 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
Loved your shot, Well taken! =)
ishooteditnblog
May 20, 2012 at 5:59 AM
Thank you, and happy exploration of the flora in your neighborhood as well.
Steve Schwartzman
May 20, 2012 at 6:23 AM
This photo displays the shape of these buds in all their glory… I would probably not usually look at the buds, but I think I like them better than the actual flower! Thanks for another enlightenment Steve!
Cathy
May 20, 2012 at 6:58 AM
I hereby, and gloriously, appoint you OmBudsMan for antelope-horns milkweed.
Steve Schwartzman
May 20, 2012 at 10:23 AM
Thank you, I’m honoured! 😉
Cathy
May 20, 2012 at 1:23 PM
I do love these series of yours where you start with a wider view of the flowers under inspection, then come in for these incredible close-ups. Fabulous!
Susan Scheid
May 20, 2012 at 8:15 AM
Thanks, Susan. To quote another classic movie: “Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night!” Okay, the word night doesn’t quite fit, but you take my point: there’s more ahead in this series on antelope-horns milkweed.
Steve Schwartzman
May 20, 2012 at 10:33 AM
How many times can I say I love your work oh this many !@!
Bonnie Michelle
May 20, 2012 at 6:20 PM
Thanks, Bonnie. I used to teach math, including numbers written in bases other than base ten, but I confess I don’t recognize the number !@!.
Steve Schwartzman
May 20, 2012 at 6:38 PM
Life is a mystery!
Bonnie Michelle
May 20, 2012 at 6:41 PM
Very interesting structure. Can’t wait to see those little balloons pop! ~ Lynda
pixilated2
May 20, 2012 at 10:58 PM
As you soon found out, you didn’t have to wait longer than the next post.
Steve Schwartzman
May 21, 2012 at 5:49 AM
Excellent shot Steve!
dhphotosite
May 21, 2012 at 2:51 PM
I’m a budding photographer.
Steve Schwartzman
May 21, 2012 at 5:40 PM
I couldn’t quite identify what seemed so familiar about this photo – it’s the colors. They’re a subtler version of the chartreuse and maroon that were so favored in the 50s. As a matter of fact, I can see them even earlier, as part of a William Morris print. Just beautiful, and so unusual.
shoreacres
May 21, 2012 at 3:48 PM
I lived through the ’50s but I can’t say I remember chartreuse and maroon; I didn’t pay much attention to such things then (though I do remember the two-tone cars of that decade). William Morris: now there was a great artist.
Steve Schwartzman
May 21, 2012 at 5:44 PM
Such potential in a bud isn’t there? What I enjoyed about this picture is not knowing what was held inside.
The World Is My Cuttlefish
May 22, 2012 at 2:06 AM
Yes, potential… and sometimes surprise.
Steve Schwartzman
May 22, 2012 at 6:34 AM