This past Valentine’s Day, my husband Paul entered the house saying he had gotten me something I would really like, but had accidentally destroyed it.
He left the house for a minute and returned with my new orchid plant in one hand, but in his other hand were the plant’s flowers.
He had hidden the plant behind the seat of his car, and in the cramped space, it tipped over. Unaware, he thinks he closed the door and clipped off the flowers.
It was a very sweet gesture because I have been photographing orchids a lot lately. I gave him a hug and said, “It’s the thought that counts.”
About five minutes later, I had a brilliant idea: “To make you feel a little better and me a lot better, lets go get another one!”
After dinner, we went to buy a new orchid plant. There was a very large selection with many different colors. It wasn’t going to be easy picking out one because not only did I want a beautiful one, I also wanted to photograph it.
Paul stood with me for a few minutes as I began looking at the orchids. He then left to get a few groceries we needed.
I finally narrowed the orchids down to three. I put them on a shelf and inspected them thoroughly. As I looked at them, I was thinking about how I would photograph them and even thought of the position the closed flowers would be in once they opened.
Paul came back and by that time, I was able to put one orchid back. With two orchids left, I had a decision to make. After a few more minutes, Paul said, “Just get both pots!” I hesitated, but I was excited to hear his suggestion! Sheepishly but excitedly, I grabbed both plants.
I spent the morning photographing them once the light was right inside my house. The light coming in through my kitchen door is magical after the sun rises over my rooftop.
I tried various backgrounds by using the black or the white side of my reflector. When the light got too bright on the orchid, I held up my diffusion panel to block the sun.
After sharing my favorite two photos on my Facebook photograph page and personal page, I asked for everyone’s opinions because I could not decide which photo to post. The majority of the people voted for the one with the black background, so it is the one I chose.
I am appreciative for Paul’s kind gesture in changing a “tragedy” into a beautiful ending.
