Is there really anything new to say about dandelion puffs? Still, who, with a macro capable camera in hand, can resist photographing them every year? There is always something in the light, or the background, or the ambiance to justify another shot. Oh shutter buttons! No one really needs any justification for another dandelion puff shot! They are reason unto themselves…sure as summer coming…sure as we love symmetry…sure as June rains which leave them shattered or June winds that send them sailing as single parachutes to plague the lawn-keepers of future summers…sure as the grass stained knees and aging backs that make every years’ harder to catch! Dandelion puff is. Therefore: dandelion puff pictures!

These are two very different shots, from a technique standpoint. Both use the Close Up scene mode on the Nikon Coolpix P500, which is a kind of assisted macro. 1) is at closest focus and the camera selected best macro setting on the zoom at 32mm equivalent field of view…taken from less than an inch away, in open shade. f3.7 @ 1/320th @ ISO 160. 2) is zoomed out to 340mm equivalent (overriding the auto setting but still macro), taken from about 5 feet, obviously in full sun. f5.5 @ 1/400th @ ISO 160.

Processed in Lightroom for Clarity and Sharpness.

I will not claim that these satisfy my dandelion puff addiction for this year…we still have weeks of temptation facing us…but for today they are sufficient.