Tag Archives: Heatherwood Japanese Garden

Hana Matoi #3

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Hana Matoi Late Fall Growth
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

A few red and green leaves of late autumn growth contrast against the dried brown leaves of the spent leaves. Ice plants in their red and yellow winter color on the hillside frame the new leaves.

Below, the fragile disectum leaves of the Hana Matoi shade the spreading blue purplish green thyme below.

This concludes my Hana Matoi mini-project. Or does it? These six images in the last 3 posts were all taken on an overcast day. Early morning light and late afternoon light provide many additional perspectives. Different seasons display different colors. Snow, ice, rain, and dew create magical views. And there are always an abundance of opportunities for abstracts. An infinite number of images are yet to be discovered.

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Hana Matoi #2

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Hana Matoi Looking Down
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

This post continues my Hana Matoi mini project. Looking for a different perspective, I walked up and leaned into the tree. I stood on my tip toes, held my camera above my head and took this image looking down through the top leaves to highlight the structure of the trunk and branches. It looks like a good spot for a bird to nest.

The image below is from a perspective of walking on a semi-hidden path adjacent to the main Japanese garden path. The Hokkeji pulls a visitor’s eyes to the Hana Matoi and the garden hillside.

Hokkeji and Hana Matoi
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

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Hana Matoi #1

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Hana Matoi Japanese Maple
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

I love my morning walks through the garden with my camera. Many times I stop and take a photograph of something I have taken several times before. A couple of days ago I decided to give myself a little challenge to take purposeful photographs of some of our Japanese maples from a different perspective than I have before.

I walked around the little Hana Matoi from different directions and distances. I took close-up and distance images. I climbed above and got down on my hands and knees to just check things out. I used the tree as my primary subject and as a background. I used my feet as my zoom lens. After about an hour, I had around fifty images of different perspectives. I decided to make a small mini project of six images to attempt to characterize our little Hana Matoi Japanese maple.

The above image portrays the Hana Matoi near the entrance of Heatherwood’s Japanese Garden looking east. The maple welcomes visitors to the garden and introduces them to what is to come.

In the image below, the Hana Matoi bids the visitors goodbye as they round a bend and start to exit the garden.

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The Caretaker

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Yukimi Lantern Overlooking Pond
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

A little Yukimi lantern guards over our small pond. During the winter months we turn off the waterfall, which allows the surface of the pond to function as a mirror reflecting the rocks and trees above. For now it is peaceful and quiet. In two months, the water will be turned back on and the waterfall’s turbulence will excite the emergence of spring.

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Come On In!

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Japanese Garden Entrance
Heatherwood, Winter

Come on it! The curved path and rock border leads the way. The Hokkoji lantern provides a greeting. Branches of deciduous trees frame a vision of what may be. Conifers hint what may lie beyond as the fog creates a little mystery and maybe hides a surprise.

These are some of the thoughts and ideas that have gone into the design of Heatherwood.

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Looking for Light

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Hokkoji Lantern
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

The entrance path to our Japanese garden is in the shade in the early morning. I walked around the corner of the house and got a blast of sun rays shining through the crabapple and Japanese maples. Frost crystals reflected tiny speckles of light back at me. I stopped … and just took in the light and the abundance of early winter color.

I appreciate the light that surrounds us. It may be physical light, or it may be the light of a new thought, or even may be the light of a smile. I try to keep my mind clear and search out the light that each day brings. Something always appears!

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Winter Welcome

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Japanese Garden Entrance
Heatherwood, Winter

Welcome to our winter garden. Fresh snow and no footprints, Heatherwood welcomes me with a fresh entrance into the Japanese garden. I started my walk with a wide angle perspective. I slowly walked forward and stopped every few steps to look around for scenes that caught my eye. I was careful not to get ahead of myself and create footprints that may distract from the view I wanted to create. Four hours later, I finished my walk with a camera filled with winter images.

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Preparing for a White Christmas

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Japanese Mountain Lantern
Heatherwood Winter

We are dreaming for a White Christmas. Thankfully, the predictions are for a snowfall on Christmas Day. The light snow we received two weeks ago helps set the stage and prepare us for some winter beauty.

Tonight is Christmas Eve. For Mary and I, it will be a quiet and peaceful evening, a time to reflect and celebrate the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ. We will be thinking of our families and friends, who many like us will be spending Christmas physically separated from our loved ones. Our spirits will be with all of you and those who have passed into our Lord’s arms before us.

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Searching for Light

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Heaherwood Japanese Garden

After a day of heavy frost, we had a day of beautiful morning sunshine. During my morning walk I focused on finding the light. The morning sun made the various colors of our late fall/early winter garden pop out in brilliant shades and hues. Water droplets on tree branches and leaves sparkled like little stars. Backlit leaves and grasses displayed semi-transparent yellow and orange shapes that fluttered in a gentle breeze. It was a beautiful morning!

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A Wide Perspective

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Limber Pine Cones and Waterfall
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

Every time I walk through our garden I get a different perspective. This day, I chose to walk around with my camera and a wide-angle lens. I saw huge (8-inch) pine cones on one of our Limber Pines. With my wide-angle lens, I started searching for something interesting to complement the cones. Moving around the tree, our pond and waterfall appeared.

As I explore our garden I sometimes focus on details, sometimes on wide views, and sometimes on whatever catches my eye. Walking in the garden is always an adventure.

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