While standing outside an office building recently, I noted several empty flower beds. Oh, but wait — not empty after all; short green stalks poked through the dirt indicating that spring is not far away. Nature is beginning to awake from her winter slumber and that means spring colors will soon be returning to our Northwest yards.
I love to look at books about nature any time of the year, but I especially enjoy them while waiting for the annual reemergence of bulbs, seeds and all of the other indicators of spring. This week I have two titles to share that showcase the beauty of nature: one through colorful photographs and artwork and the other through black and white landscape photography.
There is no doubt that nature truly lends itself to a camera’s lens. The variety of colors, textures and shapes shines through the skillful hands of a professional photographer, and in “The Wonders of Nature” written by Ben Hoare and illustrated by Angela Rizza and Daniel Long, you’ll find all of this in plenty. Written for a young audience, this striking volume published by Dorling Kindersley, known for their informative and image-filled books, really has no age limit as anyone who appreciates nature will find much to please the eye (and brain). The contents are divided into four main categories: Rocks and Minerals, Microscopic Life, Plants and Animals. Each wonder of nature is accompanied by illustrations, a brief annotation filled with interesting facts and a stunning full-page photograph. Here are some fun things I learned. Did you know that orchids are high-powered seed producers? The seeds may be tiny and “dustlike,” but “one plant can scatter 10 million seeds a year” — how very seedy of them! And did you know that there is a species of armadillo that is “only about half the length of a pencil” in size? As if this fact wasn’t wondrous enough, get ready to really smile when you learn its name: a pink fairy armadillo. How armadilly charming is that?
For a different take on nature photography, check out “Ansel Adams’ Yosemite” by Ansel Adams with a foreword by Pete Souza. There have been many books about Ansel Adams and his photography, but this one is filled with special edition prints never before published together in book form. I have always admired Adams’ photography, and looking at this collection I continue to marvel at how a black and white photograph can illuminate nature’s artistry.
