Landscape photography, for me, is like assembling a puzzle.  Only this puzzle–the outcome of which is an understanding of place–can be approached and completed from infinite different angles and strategies.  The pieces don’t follow any particular order or make any one specific image.  They are both obvious and hidden, ephemeral and permanent.  The pieces are collected with attention and moved into place through careful composition and an increasing understanding of relations.

My favorite puzzle pieces are currently plants, especially the flowering plants or herbaceous layer of the landscape.  This layer is just as dynamic as the ocean or a swirling river current, always moving, growing, reaching up for sunlight and down for nutrients.  It is, simply, alive.

After a decade of visiting the Roan Highlands along the state borders of Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina primarily for the late spring bloom of Catawba Rhododendron, I’ve been branching into different seasons to grow my understanding of this beautiful place.  This was my first visit in late May, about a month before the crowds descend for the Rhododendron bloom.  I was delighted to find plentiful flowering Sand Myrtle along the rock outcrops of Grassy Ridge’s saddle.  I’ve chased these wildflowers over near Grandfather Mountain for years; the bloom atop Roan was a pleasant surprise.  Another puzzle piece towards understanding this place.

Camera:  Nikon D850
Lens:  Nikkor 60mm f2.8 @60mm
Tripod:  Really Right Stuff TVC-33

Date taken:  May 22, 2024
Settings:  f13, 1/40 second, iso 125