The Photography of Dr. Jeffrey P. Harper

While visiting my Hong Kong in-laws, we all took the morning in the Hong Kong Flower Show.  A beautiful experience . . . and another opportunity to try out my new-ish X-T5 Fuji camera.

 

Acres of extraordinary flowers.

 

From these exciting yellow splashes, to . . .

 

 . . . to fields of colorful tulips . . . the Hong Kong Flower Show had it all!

 

I wish I could tell you the names of all these flowers . . . but I did not take notes while there . . .  I was only rffocusing on the beauty.

 

Such happiness expressed in this arrangement!

 

I think this show had more different kinds of flowers than I have ever seen i one place.

 

Some of the arrangements were fantistically beautiful.

 

Thailand had an official entry . . . a large space to showcase Thai flowers and garden aesthetics.

 

I have to confess a bias: I live in Thailand . . . and I think the Thai exhibit was the very best in the show.  There, I said it.

 

I have these in myb garden . . . astonishing!

 

Bluebells galore!!!

 

Japan also had an official entry . . . and it was beautiful too . . . and very Japanese!

 

Japanese garden style.

 

A classic formal Japanese garden.

 

Massivce tulip plantings everywhere . . . the colors were sooooo bright!

 

Tulip interiors are also interestimng.

 

More tulips . . . on the way.

 

Tulips, tulips, tulips . . . I could have done an entire entry on tulips . . . I took so many photos.

 

I have these in my garden.

 

A mixed arrangement.  Nice.

 

I wasn't the only person who thought of bringing their camera to the Flower Show. Everybody, and I do mean EVERYBODY, had their cameras and phones out taking photos . . . and there was some elbowing here and there to get the 'best' photo angles.

 

A lone pink rose.

 

New yellow rose in colorful company.

 

Yellow rose showing off.

 

There was a small pavilion with flower arrangements . . . I think this one won.

 

A massive flower arrangement.  Wow!

 

A cute "farm" display.

 

The European-style farm display used grain stalks with good results.

 

I do not know how they managed to get these fruit trees to blossom at the exact time for the Flower Show . . .

 

A lovely sunflower and succulent ground cover arrangement.

 

Lovely color and pattern . . .

 

Purple succulent splash!

 

Sunflowers always make me feel happy.

 

The organizers of this event spent a lot of time placing the flowers in perfect compositions for the many photographers who attended.

 

These were my favorite.

 

I want these in my garden . . . but it may be too hot here in Bangkok.

 

Color, color, color everywhere!

 

I was very happy with my flower photos from this show.

 

Colorful puffs.

 

So pretty.

 

It seemed at every turn we found more tulips!

 

Fields of tulips!

 

I had a great time at the flower show with my photographer brother in-law . . . .

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 The Rest Of My Hong Kong Visit:

The rest of my Hong Kong stay was equally photogenic . . . Star ferry in sunset light .

 

Hong Kong skyline . . . 

 

Many interesting kinds of boats in Hong Kong Harbour.

 

Wooden harbour "party boats" ready to board.

 

We took a late afternoon bay cruise around the back of Hong Kong Island to Lamma Island, aka, "seafood restaurant island" . . . This is our cruise boat arriving.

 

The back side of Hong Kong . . . showing the high density mass housing high-rise estates. I guess it is a good way to house people because it saves the destruction of nature and open spaces.

 

Arriving at the Lamma Island sea food village . . . where there was only sea food restaurant.

 

A long stretch of seafood eateries lining the Lamma Island harbour.

 

We found our table by the bay and set off to secure seafood favorites.

 

Our live seafood choices!!!

 

These looked good!

 

Waiting on the dock for our boat to take us back to Kowloon . . . our stomachs full from the delicious meal!

 

Our arrival by boat back into Hong Kong harbour at night was truly spectacular!

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Chi Lin Nunnery and Garden Park

It's nice to have in-laws living in Hong Kong  . . . they know the cool places to go, beyond the tourist spots, for good photography.  These gardens were magnificent!  And right in the city.

 

An astonishingly beautiful place surrounded by the city.

 

Stunning ancient Chinese styled garden pagoda.

 

Classic bridge to the Other Side.

 

Old water-powered mill in the park.

 

The inner temple at the nunnery.

 

They did not allow photography inside the temple . . . but it was fantastic.

 

Stepping out from the inner temple we were greeted with this view of Hong Kong Kowloon side.

 

When I got home I couldn't resist making a highly altered HDR "Art" photo from the nunnery.

Pak Khlong Talat is Bangkok's great flower market . . . and one of the largest flower markets in the world.

 

Literally millions of fresh lotus buds and flowers every day pass through this flower market.

 

The lotus bud is a powerful symbol in Buddhist thought.

 

Pak Khlong Talat is a huge flower market with large indoor spaces and narrow alleys all full of flowers . . . it is a wholesale market, so many buyers come every morning and send their purchases back to their shops by tuk-tuk.

 

Some buyers come to buy 'raw' flowers for arrangement elsewhere, and some come to buy ready-made arrangements, like these aromatic jasmine bud garlands (used in Buddhist blessings).  Imagine how wonderful these women smell after a days' work!!!

 

Fragrant jasmine buds being weighed.

 

Beautifully made jasmine garlands on ice, ready for sales.

 

Many kinds and styles of Buddhist votive flower arrangements were being made everywhere.

 

The market has more than flowers for sale . . . fruit for the hundreds, if not thousands of flower market workers.

 

But, of course, it is the flowers that amaze a visitor to the flower market.  Orchids everywhere!

 

 Thailand's hot and humid climate means that orchids grow outside all year long.  Just nail one on a tree and it grows!

 

Orchids come in every color of the rainbow . . .

 

Exquisite orchids.

 

 . . . including white orchids.

 

An orchid hawker tending her product.

 

The flower market is also a good place to get people photos.

 

The market opens at 3:00am when the growers begin to bring in their flowers . . . and buyers begin to purchase and ship.  This draymen looks tired!

 

Hoping for a big sale.

 

The kinds and varieties of flowers available for sale was staggering!  These sunflowers are from Thailand.

 

Roses, roses, roses . . . 

 

 . . . roses, roses, roses . . .

 

 . . . and more roses.  These wrapped roses were imported from Europe.

 

Some flowers were sold as already made arrangements, like this white lily ensemble.

 

Marigold flowers sold on nylon strings.

 

Such a beautiful and colorful array . . . 

 

Although the light in the market was not ideal for flower photography, every once in a while there was magic light!

 

Pretty little things!

 

Bunches and bunches of flowers.

 

And bundles and bundles of beautiful flowers.

 

And this extraordinary bouquet!

 

Individually hand-wrapped chrysanthemums.

 

Inside the flower market.  This was at around 9:30am and lots of the stalls were already closed . . . sold out.

 

A market draymen moving purchases out of the market to waiting tuk-tuk delivery.

 

The area around the flower is made up of many rows of old shop houses.

 

The flower market is in a very old part of Bangkok, not far from the Chao River and just north of the Chinatown district.

 

Remnants of Old Bangkok can be seen in and among the complexity of the streets.

 

Not only flowers . . . but everything a creative flower arranger might want to employ in a tropical flower arrangement!

 

Existentially beautiful tropical leaf.

 

Gorgeous.

 

And ribbons and bows for that special wedding or graduation event.

 

A complete flower arranger super store!

 

Need some green sprigs with little buds for your arrangement . . . sure, they have them.

 

And ribbons and bows . . . 

 

 . . . bunches and bunches of ribbons and bows.

 

The back side of the flower market blends into a traditional, and common, Bangkok "wet market" -- a fresh fruit and vegetable market.

A ginger hawker's display.

 

Beautiful ginger.  I love ginger . . . and many Thai dishes are made with ginger . . . especially Thai desserts, my favorite.

 

Purple net sacks full of potatoes.

 

A stack of spice root.

 

A stack of Thai squash ("fucktong" in Thai).

 

A lot of activity in the vegetable wholesale market.

 

Unique ingredients are what make Thai food so tasty.

 

A market chili sorter . . . she did not smell like flowers!!!

 

A small sale of fish . . . no doubt intended for the market workers to take home for dinner.

 

After three hours (!!) we finally stepped outside the markets.  

 

Loading up the produce . . . outside the market.

 

Produce all loaded in the tuk-tuk bound for a restaurent or small market somewhere in the city.

 

Who was that masked man?  A flower market worker taking a break.

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We walked a few blocks from the flower market to find a very good cup of coffee . . . and stumbled upon this shop selling "fake" plastic flowers:  incredibly realistic plastic flowers.  I guess some people get tired of having to buy fresh flowers over and over . . .