Sugar Magnolia, Blossoms Blooming

So I decided to start taking a photo a day for Norman Rockwell Museum's Facebook page−sort of a way to get creative with my photography, and hey... it gets me out of the office. Yesterday I focused on the magnolia trees that started blooming on campus, following the unusually warm start to spring we had last week, with temperatures in the 80s:

Yes, this is my office. Photo by Jeremy Clowe
for Norman Rockwell Museum. All rights reserved.

Norman Rockwell's Stockbridge studio at springtime.
Photo by Jeremy Clowe for Norman Rockwell Museum. All rights reserved.

It looks like I got out there just at the right time, because today the flowers had withered up due to the below normal temperatures (40s)... peaked too soon? I read an article this afternoon that farmers are especially worried about their fruit crops.

It's always an interesting time of year, where you're never really sure when things are going to hit and flowers will bloom. In the case of the magnolia trees, it is especially fleeting. They are so pretty as they come to life, but the next minute... they have disappeared. The same happened to Sarah's irises from last week. Anyway, I'll take it−I love the sights, smells and sounds of spring (the pheobe bird, in particular, is a favorite). But it definitely makes you conscious of savoring things while you can.

Photo by Jeremy Clowe. All rights reserved.

I used the Museum's Canon EOS 60D camera for these−manual setting for the outside, and flash for the window still-life. The last photo received a lot of nice compliments from staff, and one of my friends wants to create a painting from it. Well, I look forward to this new, creative exercise, and preserving a bit of spring for the memory. I'll share a few of the better shots here on this blog (or check out NRM's Facebook page).