This photo was taken in Ontario, Canada, on the way to see Niagara Falls. I sat next to this large pot of colorful flowers, and this butterfly decided to sit next to me. I absolutely love the white polka dots on his black and brown wings.
Yet another lovely nature photograph from Tasmania. Spring time brought with it many intensely colored flowers and the bees were all hard at work. The purple flower, yellow and black bee and lime green background all work together to enhance each of the colors even further. I was just lucky I finally got one photo where the bee stood still long enough to be in focus! There were so many of them on these particular flowers, and at first I was trying to follow the bees with the camera, which was not working. After much frustration and blurry bees, I eventually changed my strategy and just held the focus on the flower instead, until the bee landed in the frame. This gave me much more control over the focus without my camera moving around as much. This photo also reminds me that purple was my favorite color as a child.
This painting gives me a sense of loneliness. Maybe its the empty park bench, the sun going down and the day coming to an end.
This very cute echidna was photographed just outside of our lodge near Cradle Mountain in Tasmania. The echidna is a uniquely Australian creature with a resemblance to hedgehogs and porcupines, except that strangely, they lay eggs. On this particular afternoon, this echidna was on the hunt for ants and termites, using long claws to rip apart this tree trunk. Tasmania is rich in Australian wildlife and a wonderful place to get away and relax.
These beautiful flowers were photographed in Tasmania, Australia. Usually not a fan of the color orange, these brilliant and vibrant flowers were too wonderful to ignore. They are the bright sunshine on a gloomy day. Looking back at these photos made me wonder why that particular flower, out of all of them, deserved a close up. I will never know the answer, but it’s nice to think that there is still an individual in a seemingly endless sea of perfect flowers.
This painting was a snapshot of a bunch of gerberas sitting in a vase in my apartment. I absolutely love the deep redness of these flowers, which translated into a painting with great intensity. The colors and positioning of the flower emulates an explosive volcano which lends itself to the name of this paining.
This photograph took quite a few tries to get it perfect. Animals don’t always behave the way you want them to, and so one must have patience. This was clearly the rock of choice for these Australian Pied Cormorants, and they sat there every day at this beautiful beach in Dunsborough, Western Australia. This was the one photo where they weren’t sleeping with their heads tucked under or noisily squabbling at each other. Sitting on a platform that is barely big enough for the five birds, they were constantly trying to push each other off to gain more space. The sleek black and white look of these birds is a wonderful contrast against the wavy turquoise waters, and makes for a beautiful picture.
This beautiful succulent was growing in a pot on my balcony. An easy to keep plant, even for the most neglectful of gardeners. Many succulents can make for incredibly beautiful photographic subjects. Not only for the huge variety of colors that succulents can come in, but mostly because the geometry found in nature is particularly strong in these plants.
These Spiral Gilled Tube Worms live embedded in mounds of coral. The spirals which they project out are used for feeding and respiration. In addition to a very interesting shape, they come in an array of beautiful colors, which often makes them the subject of underwater photography. This particular photograph was taken while snorkeling in Malaysia, however, they can be found in many tropical corals around the world. When disturbed or startled, they instantly tuck themselves into their burrow, forcing me to hold my breath while they slowly fan themselves out again. I never would have thought I would find a worm so gorgeous.
This iguana is a resident of Washington Slagbaai National Park in Bonaire. A small island in the Caribbean, it is one of the less travelled destinations in this area. The turquoise colored water of its beaches can provide stunning backdrops for any photograph. This particular iguana was incredibly unafraid, and wanted to climb into my lap to eat the avocado I was spreading on my sandwich. I have photographed many iguanas while on vacation, as they are remarkably individual with unique patterns and coloring of their scales. A truly beautiful creature, even if, regardless of how happy and relaxed they are, they always look grumpy.
Laura Lecce's art and photography 