Macro of daisy covered in water drops
Article by Jeff Folger of Vistaphotography and images by the New England photography Guild.
Spring… You can small it on the breeze and as the temps climb, so do our spirits. As photographers our inspiration surrounds us and we long to get out from behind our desks and into the fields or on the beaches to record both nature and our man made environment.
Today is not as warm as yesterday nor is the sun out but I know that soon all that will change and so I asked members of the Guild to share their thoughts and images of Spring with me. As we travel around New England you will be able to see what resonates with our photographers.
Children at play on a Spring day
Bob Ring has this to say about spring in his neck of the woods. Why Spring? This photo was taken in Portsmouth, NH and shows green grass (finally) along with kids by the water without heavy coats under one of many blooming trees. The bright colors help us to forget the grays of winter.
Month taken: April
Mike Blanchette says
Spring arrives late in the northern part of New Hampshire. In fact, it comes at at time when much of New England has mentally moved on to summer. The last snow finally melts in late May and flora begins to bloom in the early part of June.
Lupines represent spring in the north country. They grow in abundance here and officially signal the end of another long winter, giving cause for much celebration. Lupines are a big deal in New Hampshire. In fact, there’s even a festival celebrated in their namesake. The town of Sugar Hill, on NH Route 117, turns into a main hub of lupine activity in early June.
Lupines: Sugar Hill, NH
The lupines usually peak in the first two weeks of June. If you decide to go, be sure to pick up an official Lupine Festival Tour Book — it will guide you to the best lupine patches in the state. Also, be sure to stop by Polly’s Pancake Parlor. This traditional restaurant will serve you a breakfast that’s likely to remain one of your most memorable. But do yourself a big favor and leave that calorie counter at home.
Amid the flowers of the blossoming apple tree lie an indigo Bunting
Judy Lombardi says
Why this means Spring to me: Every year in May I am visited by one Indigo Bunting. This tiny blue dynamo arrives like clockwork in the first week of May and adorns my feeders for only 2 or 3 weeks. He often perches in my flowering apple tree and the sight of that stunning deep blue bunting amid my pink and white apple blossoms is heavenly.
Photograph Date: May
Don Toothaker says:
This shot was taken in Salem NH at a roadside flower shop through my rain-soaked windshield. Spring rains brings an abundance of blooming color to plants and flowers everywhere.
Painted Rain
This burst of color is refreshing and beautiful.
Chris O’Donnell has this to say about Spring in Maine:
carpet of dandelions
Dandelions are one of the first signs of spring. Many people here in Maine will purposefully let these traditional weeds grow wild into a field of gold…which create many beautiful photo opportunities. – Bailey Island, ME
Apple blossoms definitely create the spring mood…once these bloom you know that sailing weather is only a few weeks away. – Bailey Island, ME
colorful blooms of Apple blossoms
As you can see spring means something different to all of us and the members of the Guild are no different. To me the first sign are the metal buckets to be seen on the side of trees from Massachusetts to Vermont and the steam rising from those funny little wooden shacks we affectionately call sugar shacks. Then we start to hear the calls of the early birds arriving from down south and finally the first buds of pussy willow and the red buds of the red maple make their appearance.
Jeff Folger of the Vistaphotography art gallery
