Four-nerve daisy portraits 3 and 4
Here are the final two portraits in this series of four four-nerve daisies, Tetraneuris linearifolia, that I made at the West Pickle Campus of the University of Texas in north Austin on March 18. For the picture above I aimed horizontally toward a deeply shaded area. For the one below I aimed with a wide aperture toward plants far enough away to leave no details, with the result that the daisy’s green stalk is even less noticeable than the stalk in the darker portrait, and the second flower head almost seems to float disembodiedly in green space.
© 2020 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
Thanks very much for the ongoing series of cheering images Steve.
Stay well.
Regards Thom
Thom Hickey
April 1, 2020 at 4:50 AM
You’re welcome. Texas wouldn’t be Texas without the spring wildflowers it’s justifiably famous for.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 8:17 AM
Even when I enlarge your second image, I can’t make out a second flower head. I’ll take your word for it that it’s there, but–at least for my eyes, “disembodiedly” seems too mild an adverb. Thanks for introducing us to these; I’d not heard of them before.
krikitarts
April 1, 2020 at 5:12 AM
My text must have misled you: by “second” I meant the one in the second picture, as opposed to a second flower head in that same picture. Four-nerve daisies are quite common here, and at least a few put in an appearance throughout the year. In spite of that, my impression is that few people here pay attention to them or know what they are. In fact we have two similar species that I have trouble telling apart.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 8:24 AM
The flower head was oriented and conformed (in a narrow plane), so your approach worked. Thanks for sharing the technique.
MichaelStephenWills
April 1, 2020 at 5:26 AM
With respect to these flower heads, you’ve confirmed that they conformed. I appreciate your conformation confirmation.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 8:27 AM
Great floral compositions, Steve! The dark backgrounds enhance the beauty of the yellow daisies.
Peter Klopp
April 1, 2020 at 10:29 AM
I often use dark backgrounds to contrast with bright subjects. The previous post’s treatment of one of these daisies against a mostly white sky was unusual for me.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 1:16 PM
I thought so, too.
Peter Klopp
April 1, 2020 at 1:40 PM
While unusual for unusual’s sake may not be good, in that case I think the atypical approach worked well.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 4:24 PM
Magical!
margie m roe
April 1, 2020 at 10:31 AM
Welcome to the magic.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 1:17 PM
And of course you know what I think.
Michael Scandling
April 1, 2020 at 10:50 AM
And we’re both fond of showing a series from time to time.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 1:17 PM
Truth.
Michael Scandling
April 1, 2020 at 1:24 PM
With no bad consequences that I’m aware of.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 4:26 PM
Good barking, Bob.
Michael Scandling
April 1, 2020 at 4:34 PM
Especially if it’s in a certain town in New Mexico.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 8:03 PM
Especially.
Michael Scandling
April 1, 2020 at 8:14 PM
Your freely floating flower also floats my fancy, Steve.
tanjabrittonwriter
April 1, 2020 at 6:18 PM
What you’ve said harmonizes well with the first letter of this wildflower’s common name.
Steve Schwartzman
April 1, 2020 at 8:04 PM
That might have made burst the limits of the alliteration, Steve. 🙂
tanjabrittonwriter
April 2, 2020 at 5:59 PM
Some people are fine with illimitable alliteration.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2020 at 6:07 PM
That’s the way to work it! Your isolation skills are amazing, Steve!
circadianreflections
April 1, 2020 at 9:32 PM
Isolation skills come in handy these days.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2020 at 5:51 AM
You were right about that ‘disappearing’ stem in the first photo. It’s just visible enough to catch the eye, but faint enough to require a second look. Perfect. As for the second photo, I looked and looked at the colors, caught by their familiarity. I couldn’t figure it out for a while, and then I got it. You can take the girl out of Iowa, but…
shoreacres
April 2, 2020 at 6:04 PM
Ah, Deere Iowa.
As far as I know, no mystery novelist has yet written a book called The Case of the Disappearing Stem. I still know more about Latin stems than botanical ones, even if I’ve taken lots of pictures of the latter and none of the former. And then there’s the story of “The Farmer and the Ladder.”
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2020 at 6:13 PM
I prefer the first for the slightly visible stem but the second for the nicely out of focus background green. When enlarged, I can just barely see the stem in the second.
Steve Gingold
April 3, 2020 at 3:35 AM
I had no hint that the stems would turn out so faint. I’m sure glad they did, because they ended up giving me a new take on this kind of daisy that I’ve portrayed so many times.
Steve Schwartzman
April 3, 2020 at 6:00 AM