Papaver rhoeas

801_4358 [Papaver rhoeas]

Photographed on the Acropolis rocks in Athens on April 26, 2014

An amazing transformation

Pieris brassicae - larva

CCC1140 [Pieris brassicae - larva]

Walking on the rocks of the Acropolis, I nearly stepped on this “ugly”, some might say “repulsive” creature that was moving in front of me carefree and unaware of the danger she was exposed to. I would have bypassed her indifferently if I hadn’t noticed the yellow lines and black spots along her body that reminded me of the well-known and common butterfly called Pieris brasicae.

I took the picture out of habit, having no use of it in mind. Well … not until now!

Photographed on December 18, 2010

Pieris brassicae - adult

802_6977 [Pieris brassicae - adult]

A few weeks ago I was happy to have a “close encounter” in our garden with this butterfly. This airy, beautiful Pieris brassicae that once was “ugly” and “repulsive”.

What an amazing transformation!

What a miracle of life ... which, however, does not often get our full attention!

Photographed in Holargos on October 03, 2016

I came across a short well-written article on the Internet the other day describing a butterfly’s life cycle.
 If you' re interested, you can follow this link:

http://www.thebutterflysite.com/life-cycle.shtml

Crocus cartwrightianus

_8027561-NX [Crocus carwrightianus]

_8027537-NX [Crocus cartwrightianus]

Both photographed on Mt. Hymittos on November 08, 2016

Nature’s necklace

802_7690 [Nature’s necklace]

The heavy rain that almost flooded the city a few days ago left behind difficult conditions for many but an opportunity for the blogger to experiment with capturing water drops that kept hanging from plant twigs.
 
Looking at the captured image on the screen, I subconsciously associated it with a necklace but I thought something was missing. So I took the liberty [“artistic license”?] to add a few stars here and there to provide a little bit of the missing glittering quality of a necklace.
 
I’m sharing the outcome with you.
 
Photographed in Holargos on November 27, 2016

Prospero autumnale

802_7208 [Prospero autumnale]

This is a very small autumn squill that often remains unnoticeable by the passer-by. Yet, its beautiful flowers - usually less than a cm wide that come in variations of pink, violet or blue, are rewarding to the viewer. The flower above was experimentally flooded with light from five flash sources in an attempt to pop up color and detail.

Photographed at Hollargos on October 21, 2016.jpg

Full moon rolling down the hill

802_6637 [Full moon rolling down the hill]

The approach of an August full moon event always "activates an alarm" that reminds me to start photographic preparations to shoot the "romantic disc". This year was no exception. When time came, I entered coordinates to my GPS device and headed for my pre-selected "vantage point". Alas! I ended up 4 km away because I had carelessly entered the wrong coordinates! The moon was about to rise and I had no time for corrective action! The rest of the story was nothing but a frustrating situation that ended when I saw the moon rise behind the hill. Fortunately, I had already set up the camera on the tripod - in spite of the fact that I was at the wrong place - and had decided to wait and see where the moon would rise.

Outcome: two shots in my bag. [See the other one here.]
It seems that the saying "Every cloud has a silver lining" is true!

Photographed at Sounio on August 18, 2016

Crocus laevigatus

_8027485 [Crocus laevigatus]

_8027488 [Crocus laevigatus

This crocus is endemic to Greece and comes in two variations, lilac or white.
 
Both photographed on Mt. Hymittos on November 05, 2016

Spiranthes spiralis

802_7153 [Spiranthes spiralis]

A close up

802_7180 [Spiranthes spiralis]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on October 13, 2016