The Photography of Dr. Jeff Harper

When we arrived home from Canada I noticed that one of the orchids in the garden had bloomed.  This particular Vanda orchid, a Vanda Pachara Delight, blooms only twice a year.

Orchids are extraordinarily interesting in the way that their textures and features mimic living creatures from the animal kingdom.

A close examination of an orchid petal reveals a tiny world of amazement.

As the shadows of a late afternoon crossed the orchids, strange orchid moods  arrived.

The sun struck the orchid at odd angles, revealing new detail as the minutes passed by.

Orchid reproductive anatomy.

I'm glad I bought that Sigma 70mm macro lens.

Reproduction of this amazing living entity takes place here.

Ah, that wonderful Pacific Northwest "summer" weather!

As usual, the weather was "variable" -- cloudy, to partly cloudy, to clear blue skies . . . all in one day.

After four wonderful days in Vancouver with our friends Denise and John, we had to go.  The views from their fabulous apartment will be with me forever.

As the sun set on our last evening we made some last minute packing decisions, headed for the airport . . . and 24 hours later walked in our front door in Bangkok. We had a great summer: Atlantic City (NJ), Ocean City (NJ) for The 4th, Bear (DE), sailing on the Chesapeake Bay (DE), Vancouver (BC). the Canadian Rockies (Banff and stunning Lake Louise), Calgary (the Stampede!), and back to Vancouver and the Canadian Open PGA tournament.

When a person has lived in close proximity to the equator for over 25 years, as I have, they are easily amazed when encountering temperate rain forest flora. Vancouver's Stanley Park is flush with floral beauty.

The Rhododendrons were wet from a morning shower.

A small platoon of Rhododendron stamen surprises the morning.

Rhododendron flower clusters begin as a bud.

The path I followed was often lined with a froth of pink.

The pink froth array came in many varieties.

Rare white Rhododendrons could be seen here and there.

The wet forest floor hid some wet yellow blooms.

What is going on here? What is the ecological niche and counterpart of these magnificent reproductive parts?

Purple Chrysanthemums blossoms begin as these green bud clusters . . .

. . . and progress through this adolescent stage.

All of the forests of the Pacific Northwest of North America are completely colonized by the ubiquitous fern. Stanley Park is no exception.

Not every flower one encounters in these environs is neat, tidy, symmetrical . . .

. . . or friendly.

I spent the afternoon at the PGA Canadian Open, held at the Shaughnessy Golf Club outside Vancouver, B.C. It was a beautiful cool, bright summer day. The pros were relaxed, but focused - no million dollar puts today!

Most of the big name PGA pros went out on the course early, but we did see J.M. Olazable, Charlie Wi, and Bob Cambell. Fans are absolutely prohibited from bringing cameras into the golf course during PGA events, so I was restricted to feigning phone calls while I took photos with my iPhone.  Sorry for the relatively poor photos (compared to my Canon 40D).

The golf course was fantastic: the fairways were like a carpet, the rough was gnarly and wiry, and the greens were like a billiard table.