A pastel pad
Freezing weather is one of the things that can make the pad of a prickly pear cactus, Opuntia engelmannii, turn from green to pastel shades of rose, orange, and yellow. I took this abstract photograph of such a cactus in my neighborhood on February 13th, during the same session that brought you yesterday’s more-conventional view.
© 2014 Steven Schwartzman
Wonderful capture–I really like the abstract elements and your composition.
lensandpensbysally
March 5, 2014 at 7:33 AM
Thanks, Sally. You know how fond I am of abstractions.
Steve Schwartzman
March 5, 2014 at 8:19 AM
A classic Schwartzman beauty. I have observed before that you have an eye (or perhaps two) which is well suited to this very particular sort of abstraction. I like the way you focus on something quite crisp but, more so, the way in which the background always has such visual appeal. My girls once read a series of fiction books which were part of the Zanth series (Piers Anthony) … Zanth is a magical land in which all folks have their own particular magical capacity … if you were from Zanth I’d say your magical talent allows you to produce images such as this. D
Pairodox Farm
March 5, 2014 at 2:32 PM
When playing that magical role maybe I’ll have to insert four letters and adopt the name Schwartzanthman. It’s good of you to notice that in this kind of abstraction I like to have something important in focus, even if it’s something as slender as a prickly pear cactus spine. Thanks for your words in favor of abstractions like this one.
Steve Schwartzman
March 5, 2014 at 3:02 PM
Why didn’t I see the logic of Schwart-zanth-man?
Pairodox Farm
March 5, 2014 at 3:21 PM
Nice abstract, Steve.
Steve Gingold
March 5, 2014 at 5:19 PM
And different enough from others I’ve done that I can claim some novelty.
Steve Schwartzman
March 5, 2014 at 6:31 PM
this blows me away.
sedge808
March 5, 2014 at 8:18 PM
This is the first time anyone’s made that comment about a picture in this blog.
Steve Schwartzman
March 5, 2014 at 8:27 PM
Beautiful colours in the abstraction but I can barely move my focus away from the distraction of that horribly sharp cactus spine.
Gallivanta
March 5, 2014 at 10:56 PM
It’s actually the small spines, the glochids visible in the previous picture, that are more to be feared, because they easily get into your skin and are hard to pull out. The large spines are easier to see and avoid.
Steve Schwartzman
March 6, 2014 at 7:30 AM
Ah…that makes a lot of sense.
Gallivanta
March 6, 2014 at 5:38 PM
This is gorgeous. The contrast between the sharp, pain-inducing spine and the soft, spring-like colors, is remarkable. I’m passing on this link to one of my readers who’s responsible for children’s sermons now and then. I suspect he’ll be able to find a Lent-and-Easter-belong-together message here.
Those yellows and pinks really are luscious.
shoreacres
March 7, 2014 at 8:07 AM
This picture was something new in my perpetual quest for novelty, and having it be the basis for a children’s sermon would be another novel thing.
I don’t think I’ll ever relent when it comes to etymology: our word Lent is related to length, as this is the season when people rejoice to see the daylight hours lengthening.
Steve Schwartzman
March 7, 2014 at 8:22 AM
This is an absolutely beautiful capture…like a work of art!
Lee@A Guide to Landscape Design & Maintenance
March 7, 2014 at 5:49 PM
That’s what I strive for, so thanks.
Steve Schwartzman
March 7, 2014 at 7:02 PM