FINE ART NATURE AND LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY OF ARIZONA, COLORADO, AND THE WESTERN UNITED STATES
In Arizona, Prickly Pear Cacti produce vibrant yellow and orange blossoms in the month of April. Like most cacti, the blossoms are only photogenic for the day on which they bloom because the hot sun causes the delicate petals to wilt.
By late August and into September, the Prickly Pear blossoms have morphed into fruit. If you catch them at just the right time, that fruit has a deep red color which makes for good photographs. Of course, it takes a cactus with a profuse April bloom (followed by a profuse amount of fruit later on) for the best photo opportunities.
I was able to find such a cactus, not in the wild but close to where I live, enabling me to get some really good photographs!
Another type of cactus, the Firestick Cactus, has been on my list of cacti to photograph for quite some time. If you live in the greater Phoenix area you’ve probably seen them when they turn a deep yellow/orange several times a year. If you’ve ever had the unfortunate experience of getting any of the juice/liquid in the cactus stems on your skin (or worse, in your eye), you know that it is very potent and can cause temporary blindness.
I was able to find some photogenic Firestick Cactus close to home which resulted in a few good photos.
Both the Prickly Pear fruit and Firestick Cactus images are included in this new batch of images, along with a bunch of others.
Here’s a list of the new images, all of which viewable on the New page:
- Dead Cactus, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 459)
- Cirrus Cloud Formation, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 463)
- Dead Pine Tree, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 458)
- Firestick Cactus, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 469)
- Firestick Cactus, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 470)
- Fishhook Cactus Blossom, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 464)
- Prickly Pear Cactus Fruit, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 452)
- Prickly Pear Cactus Fruit, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 455)
- Red Push Pistache Tree Leaves, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 460)
- Red Push Pistache Tree Leaves, Phoenix, Arizona (ID: 461)
- Prickly Pear Cactus Fruit, Arizona (ID: 451)
- Prickly Pear Cactus Fruit, Arizona (ID: 454)
- Echinopsis Cactus Blossoms, Arizona (ID: 457)
- Firestick Cactus, Arizona (ID: 467)
- Night-Blooming Cereus Cactus Blossom, Arizona (ID: 466)
Here are a few samples:
