I’m believe this is a magnolia… of some sort. Just waiting on Tom Cruise to confirm. Have a great weekend, everyone!
Stanley Spector (*watching it rain frogs*): “This happens. This is something that happens.”
– Jeremy Blackman – Magnolia
About this image: digital photograph, lightly modified
Refrigerator Magnate 
They’re so strange, I think, the way they grow on sticks. But beautiful too. Cool image, Robert.
They are a bit odd, aren’t they? The ‘pods’ the bloom out of seem a bit strange, too… interesting, though. Wikipedia says some members of the subfamily go back 95 million years… kind of cool, when you think about it!
Thank you very much, S.E.!
🙂
Great work SIG
and do have a fine
day today 🙂
Androgoth
Thanks much, A.G.!
Wishing you a wonderful day as well, sir!
🙂
My guess is magnolia. Took me a sec to figure out the branch is in a bottle. Very interesting composition!
That would have been my guess, too… the tree this branch came off of looks a bit different the the other magnolias around here… but according to Wikipedia there are 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily… so… you know… ‘them facts gotta’ hold up’… maybe.
Thank you very much, Tracy!
🙂
Ohhhh, yeah, bottle. I see it now. The background of this was wildly confusing to me, but the foreground was wildly beautiful, so it evened out to a nice, neutral, half-pretty picture.
j/k, SIG, j/k. It’s lovely. One of those times when shadows really work.
Hahaha…
*whew* I thought I was going to have to run to the shadows for a minute there!
Thanks much, U.M.!
🙂
How did you get the white and brown reversed like that?! I love the reflection/color and how it is the opposite. Neat stuff, SIG. The brown reflection in the bottle reminds me of the shape of a coke bottle. This photo has so much in it – I stare and see something new every time. Well done!
Oh, and have a great weekend!
The light did all the work for me with that, Ms. D…
I just lined it up so the line between the light coming through the window and ‘shadow’ from the inside the room were somewhat centered on the bottle. Hahaha… very happy to hear you are a reminded you of a Coke bottle! That’s probably my all-time favorite beverage! I think I might just have to go get some now… well… I pretty much had to anyway!
Thanks so much, Ms. D! I hope you have a wonderful weekend as well!
🙂
As long as you didn’t quote Steel Magnolias. I would have to wonder about you.
“Pink is my signature color.”
You know that was like a dare.
Of course I had to look this up on IMDb.
And I went with the first one sentence quote I could find.
🙂
It looks a bit like a white Dogwood blossom. If I could see it straight on I would know for sure 🙂 It’s a great photo!
Hmm…
that might be another possibility, Mary… there certainly are a lot of them around here!
Or so I’ve been told (can you tell I’m not much of a botanist)?!
🙂
the petals look like it could be a dogwood.
however the stigma definitely looks like it belongs to a magnolia.
am no pro by any means, but YMMG (you made me google) and I found ‘flower’ in wikipedia, as well as dogwood – ‘cornus (genus)’ and ‘magnolia’.
I can already tell you know WAY more about this sort of thing than I do, P&K…
it’s embarrassing… if I can’t point to an example when refering to a plant chances are I’m in trouble!
🙂
no worries – a rose (or magnolia or dogwood or….) by any other name – makes for just as sweet a click 🙂
It’s really unique flower. Nice composition. Have a great day. 🙂
I really liked it because it made me think of spring – which I’m always a big fan of!
Thank you so much, Cocomino! I hope you have a wonderful day as well!
🙂
Lovely! Great composition and fantastic lighting. The coke bottle is a nice touch.
Thanks so much, Ms. F!
Coke is always very inspiring!
🙂
Why does remind me of The Day of the Triffids????
Hahaha…
it was speaking Russian… but I really didn’t think much of that at the time…
🙂
There is a stunning magnolia tree in my mom’s neighbor’s yard. The fragrance is intoxicating. I love that you chose magnolias for this piece.
There are quite a few magnolias around our apartment… they are always so cheerful when in full bloom… I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try something!
🙂
It’s beautifl M. SIG 🙂 I wish to have magnolia tree close to my house 🙂
Thank you very much, Ms. B!
They really are nice trees to have around… so cheerful!
🙂
Beautiful shot, Bob. Here’s to “Sugar Magnolias” and spring blossoms of all sorts. 😀
Many thanks, Nancy!
Indeed! Viva la spring!
🙂
Lovely photo. We had a magnolia tree in a previous house & it was so beautiful when it was in flower. I love them they sure are magnificent trees.
There where I’m originally from… but they sure seem happy to be around here… which makes me happy (because, as you’ve said they are magnificent)!
Thanks so much, Mr. M!
🙂
I like the shades of ivory and taupe
I often find myself working with neutrals…
not sure why that is because I often admire the more vivid palates I see in other people’s work…
🙂
Confession time . . . I find it so difficult commenting on your wonderful images! I keep scrolling up and down, up and down back to the image which keeps drawing me back simply to look at and enjoy because there is always so much to see.
The amber light, reflection, form and angle are all so hypnotic. Honest!
Oh, my! Thank you so much for such a wonderfully warm and generous comment!
I am so flattered by your great comment!
I just try to work on things that interest me, and then hope that other folks will be amused by some of it, too!
You are far, far too kind, Ms. K! Thank you again!
🙂
Ah, when the magnolia’s bloom in the glass menagerie, and the shadows of memory reveal themselves. Beautiful composition.
My thanks to you, sir!
I had fun playing around with quite a few different angles / etc…
but in the end, this one seemed to be the most effective…
I think…
🙂
I didn’t know magnolias grew out of bottles. They’ve never grown out of any bottles I’ve had.
It is what he puts in the bottle.
Red.
Hahaha… Miracle Grow… specially adapted for bottle use…
🙂
Everything at my house likes tequila. It is very similar to Miracle Grow.
Red.
Hahaha… I hear worms are fans of both, too!
🙂
EveryTHING, or just you?
Everything. All of them. Nothing excluded. Tequila rules.
Red.
Hahaha…
probably not an every day occurrence…
I waited a long time for this one to sprout!
🙂
Love this one. This species of magnolia grows here. The trees are not like the ones we have at home. I have a picture of my sister sitting in one. When I showed the picture to another friend, she was convinced it could not be a magnolia because the trunk was too big for my sister to get her arms around. I know that one has been there more than 60 years because I remember it being big when I was a little girl.
Fabulous presentation, SIG. I particularly like the perspective. I am a few steps left of center, so for me this one is perfect.
Red.
Sounds like a wonderful tree where some great memories were made!
I grew up to far North for Magnolias to be very common, but they seem to be doing very well here! To tell you the truth, I don’t always even recognize or remember how many there really are (can you tell I’m not much of a gardening guru?) until they are in bloom, and then I’m pleasantly surprised all over again!
Thank you very much for your kindness, Red! I sincerely appreciate it!
🙂
I was amazed when I moved further north to see them growing in the open (along with dogwoods). Where I come from, both species have to grow under the cover of oaks or coniferous trees so they do not burn up.
All time fave magnolia is the Japanese. Looking forward to planting another one when I get home. I have a fab painting of JM blooms in my dining room. My computer faces it. It is one of my inspiration points.
Red.
Just looked up a Japanese Magnolia as my botanical skills are a bit sad (now where did I leave my dichotomous key again?)! Good call, Red… not too shabby looking! I can see why you are looking forward to planting one… AND why you find them inspiring… so nice!
🙂
I have a green thumb with a skunk-like black stripe down it. If something at my house dies and comes back, it deserved to live here. After the initial testing, things grow around me in abundance. I will be posting a picture in the next weekish which is one of my fave plants. I have one indoors (where it is not supposed to grow) which blooms the most amazing, plastic-looking flowers. It has four bloom heads on it now…something else it is not supposed to do.
Makes my green-thumbed mother jealous. She has one and hers only blooms one at a time 😉
Red.
Pretty! And interesting textures throughout. Very cool.
Many thanks, Patti!
I sure appreciate that!
🙂
Cool light and angle! It looks like a cool speaker! 😀
Thanks, Cristina!
If it’s cool that means it’s playing your music!
🙂
beautiful! i love the shadows.
I noticed that wonderful light flooding through the window and just couldn’t pass it up!
Thanks so much, U.M.!
🙂
Absolutely beautiful, Inky. So sorry I’ve been MIA – first time in a week I’ve left any real comments. Hope all is very well in your world. 🙂
Not at all! I imagine you are a very busy lady right about now…
all the usual goings-on, plus that wonderful news about the new book, too!
Congratulations again, Dishy! And thank you! I sure hope you and your family are doing well, too!
🙂
Great work again Bob Excellent 🙂
Many thanks, Jake!
I sincerely appreciate it!
🙂
Did Mr Cruise phone yet?
Hahaha…
So far that is a mission he chose not to accept, Nigel!
🙂
I always love to see pictures of our state flower. Really beautiful.
You know, I didn’t realize the Magnolia was Mississippi’s state flower, JB…
very cool! Not a bad choice at all, I’d say!
🙂
Lovely! Smelled lovely too! 🙂 I was surprised that it bloomed so long after being picked.
P.S. I just heard the owl again…
I was surprised by that, too!
I think it thought it was it’s own tree, Annabelle!
P.S. I probably did, too.
🙂
everything has already been said – this is a cool click!
thanks for sharing 🙂
Many thanks, P&K!
🙂
I love Magnolia’s…one of my favorite trees. You know many, many years ago when I lived in Riverside Calif for a short time they had a street called Magnolia and both sides of the street was lined with these beautiful Magnolia trees…..Excellent Sig!
Hugs, xx
Sounds wonderful, Ms. A! I can imagine how incredible that street must look when all those Magnolias are in bloom! Wow!
Thank you so much, Deb!
Very nice Bob – the lines of the background really accentuate the shape of the flower in the bottle.
Thanks much, Martin!
I shot this a lot ‘sharper’ but wound up putting in a little artificial blur…
hope I found the right balance between some background interest and distraction…
🙂
great shot, really emotive!
I sure appreciate that, Mr. D!
Thanks so much for stopping by!
🙂
My pleasure, I’ll def be back!
Awesome!
Thank you!
🙂