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29812774 |
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Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 |
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© Valter Binotto_Wildlife Photographer of the Year, Plants winner |
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Wind composition
Valter Binotto
ITALY
Winner,Plants and Fungi
With every gust of wind,showers of pollen were released,lit up by the winter sunshine. The hazel tree was near Valter’s home in northern Italy,and to create the dark background,he positioned himself to backlight the flowers. Hazel has both male and female flowers on the same tree,though the pollen must be transferred between trees for fertilization. Each catkin comprises an average of 240 male flowers,while the female flower is a small bud-like structure with a red-tufted stigma. The pollen-producing catkins open early in the year,before the leaves are out,and release huge amounts of pollen to be carried away by the wind. And now recent research suggests that bees may also play a role. The catkins are an important source of pollen for early bees and have a bee?friendly structure,while the red colour of the female flowers may entice insects to land on them. ‘The hardest part was capturing the female flowers motionless while the catkins were moving,’ explains Valter. ‘I searched for flowers on a short branch that was more stable.’ Using a long exposure to capture the pollen’s flight and a reflector to highlight the catkins,he took many pictures before the wind finally delivered the composition he had in mind.
Nikon D4 + 200mm f4 lens,1/80 sec at f10,ISO 200,remote shutter release,Gitzo tripod + Benro head,reflector. |
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