I got some good photos today! More specifically, I would say I got the best macro flower photos I have ever taken! I got some really good ones of Lilly, too, though. The weather conditions early this morning were perfect for macro flower photography: recent rain, calm wind, and partial overcast.
We went out for breakfast for the first time today. We went to Seahorse Restaurant in the Pass-a-Grille Beach neighborhood of St. Pete Beach, Florida.
We had tortilla chips with dip at my condo in the early evening, and just my mom and I had Mexican food for dinner in our condo, courtesy of DoorDash again.
In the evening, I got another photo of the sunset on Sunset Beach, taken from the balcony of our condo.
Pink flowers (forgive my laziness for the horrible taxonomy in this post)Palm plant (like a bush, not a tree)Another view of the palm plantPurple flowersOrange flowersRed flowersAnother plant with purple flowersCenter crop of one of the small, brown lizards I mentioned earlier that I wanted to photograph. They hang out by the pool in the morning.Another small, brown lizard (look in the lower-left of the photo) on what I’m guessing is aloe veraPalm tree trunkFisherman on Sunset BeachPool for Land’s End right after openingAcuRite wall clock with hygrometer and thermometer on a wall by the pool. I love this brand and own some of their products myself.Grandma Nita in a roofed walkway before entering Seahorse RestaurantLilly at Seahorse RestaurantProfile of Lilly at Seahorse RestaurantLoren at Seahorse RestaurantMarc at Seahorse RestaurantMarc with Lilly by Pass-a-Grille ChannelClose-up of Lilly by Pass-a-Grille ChannelSeabird by Pass-a-Grille ChannelSunset on Sunset Beach taken from the balcony of my condo
I am starting to change my opinion on A.I. When I wrote my post “I Don’t Need A.I.” in July of 2025, I had never used A.I. I thought using A.I. was cheating, and I wanted to go as long as possible before ever using it.
Over the last few months, however, I’ve begun using it, as some questions seem almost impossible to answer without A.I. Therefore, I am shifting my stance on A.I. My post was mostly about not wanting to use A.I. to enhance my writing, and I still agree with that sentiment. But there are many questions and projects that are much easier to undertake with the assistance of A.I.
Take, for example, photographing tulips. I went to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum near my hometown this morning to photograph their thousands of tulips on display, and I wanted more successful photos, so I turned to Google Gemini. The chatbot provided the detailed, succinct advice I’ve come to expect from it over the past few months. I will continue to turn to Gemini for photography advice, in addition to the myriad questions I ask it on an almost daily basis now.
Next year, I will make sure to visit the Arboretum earlier in the spring to get photos of the tulips when they’re at their peak. I had been waiting for certain weather conditions (mild overcast and light wind) and just never found the ideal conditions. By the time I finally visited the Arboretum today, the tulips were past their peak, and there were about a dozen workers removing the unappealing ones. Last year, I never even made it to the Arboretum to photograph the tulips, despite having just bought a macro lens for that purpose, because I didn’t find the weather conditions perfect. I’m learning photography is less about finding perfect weather conditions and more about capturing the moment whenever it arises, regardless of the weather conditions.
When I photographed the tulips this morning, the sky cover was at 2 percent and the wind speed was at 8 mph. The wind was less of a detriment to the photos than the bright sun. I think the photos still turned out OK—they are the best tulip photos I’ve ever taken—but I’m not about to get them printed and framed.
I took these four photos from 9:32 to 9:52 a.m. in Chaska, Minnesota.
Tulipa, ‘Yosemite,’ Single Late TulipTulipa, ‘Graceland,’ Triumph TulipTulipa, ‘Antionette,’ Single Late TulipTulipa, ‘Memphis,’ Triumph Tulip
Scribner.org 