Flowers Under a Magnifying Glass

Inspired by the porcelain flowers under glass, I looked for a way to place my little dried flowers under glass or something which would represent the idea of a protective dome. I laid an old magnifying glass over them and then took photographs. This protected them to some extent but the weight of the glass squashed them slightly which of course can happen as a result of over protection. It also placed them under close scrutiny, magnifying their detail and sometimes distorting their shape and at certain angles they would appear to vanish completely.

Interestingly the magnifying glass changes the effect of the light but it also seems to intensify the colour of the flowers.

I used a wide aperture on some of the photographs, which increased the light and gave the impression of slight over exposure. I love the effect which this has but I also like the darker richer tones which are closer to the original conditions.

A buttercup and wild strawberry flower, not under glass, but thrown in for good measure.

I have taken hundreds of photographs of the dried flowers and these are just a few of them. Hopefully all of this inspiration will turn into some actual work, but as always the investigation and the development of the ideas is a very exciting part of the whole process. Who knows where it will lead.

Photos. Lynnette Miller