ENTRY DESCRIPTION
This image of a magnolia blossom is titled "Monochrome Magnolia" I go to great lengths to find flowers that have not been handled. I am fortunate to live in an area that has beautiful magnolia trees. When they are in bloom, I cut the blooms at precise times in order to get the shot I am looking for. Magnolia flowers are not easy to keep pristine and after a few hours, they start losing their form and brown spots begin to form on their petals. I was so fortunate to get this shot. It's as if the bloom is floating in mid-air. I find particular interest seeing flowers in black in white because it is then not the color that draws the viewer in, but the composition. This image is a compilation of many photos combined into one. Using different focal lengths in one shoot allows me to capture all the beautiful and often unseen detail that simply cannot be appreciated with one shot, a technique called photo stacking.

AUTHOR
Amy Ouderkirk’s floral portraits are striking studies of beauty and form. Through measured composition and dramatic lighting, Amy brings her subjects to life with a sense of powerful elegance. Her style is unique in her ethereal, detailed, yet minimalist capture. By using a macro lens and stacking the photos (many images combined into one), the viewer is able to explore the complexities and extraordinary details and that are often unappreciated. One can clearly see when viewing her subjects that the works of Georgia O'Keeffe, Ansel Adams and Mapplethorpe have all influenced her style of work.

back to gallery