Gallery: spreading fern-fronds
Only spread a fern-frond over a man’s head and worldly cares are cast out, and freedom and beauty and peace come in
John Muir
There is something very intriguing about ferns. Almost prehistoric in nature, it is easy when among them to imagine dinosaurs walking the earth. Unsurprising perhaps, as these often-beautiful plants actually predate those dinosaurs!
Denzil’s as-always informative Nature Photo challenge post this week tells us that there are fossil records of ferns dating back more than 360 million years. He also explains that ferns do not produce seeds or flowers but rather reproduce via spores. They can be found almost everywhere in the world but in the greatest numbers and diversity in the tropics. And they live in a wide variety of habitats, from high mountains to dry deserts to wetlands. But most favour one of four environments: shady forests, crevices in rocks, acid bogs and swamps, and on the trees of rainforests where many grow as epiphytes.
His photos of ferns are in shades of lush green. But because the shapes of ferns lend themselves so well to patterns of light and shade and to texture, I’ve chosen to edit mine with Silver Efex Pro to share with Leanne’s Monochrome Madness challenge too.
My images are a mix of tropical ferns seen mostly in the rain and cloud forests of Costa Rica, and the bracken that grows in many places here in the UK, with a few other locations thrown in too. My feature photo was taken at the Bio Habitat Hotel, Armenia, Colombia, and has already appeared in its colour version in my February Changing Seasons post.
Tree fern in the cloud forest of Monteverde, Costa Rica
More tree ferns in the cloud forest of Monteverde, Costa Rica
Fern fronds opening, Monteverde cloud forest, Costa Rica
Fern fronds opening, Selvatura Park, Costa Rica
Another fern frond opening in Selvatura Park, Costa Rica
Growing in a pot in the Barrio Lastarria area of Santiago, Chile
In the Olympic National Park, WA
Also in the Olympic National Park, WA
In Plessey Woods, Northumberland
Another from Plessey Woods, Northumberland
At Brimham Rocks, Yorkshire
Bracken fronds on a lichen-covered roof at Fountains Abbey, Yorkshire
30 Comments
SoyBend
Very nicely shown in monochrome, Sarah! I especially liked the sword fern in Olympic National Park.
Sarah Wilkie
That’s a favourite of mine but I didn’t know it was called a sword fern – thank you Siobhan 🙂
Denzil
What a great idea Sarah. Stunning photos as always.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks Denzil, glad you approve 😀
wetanddustyroads
We had a lot of ferns in our garden when I was a child. My mother loved it and even had it in pots around the house. These days we see a lot of ferns on our hikes here in the forests, so it brings back a lot of great memories. And you just proved that ferns look absolutely beautiful in B&W – I really like your fern photos taken in Costa Rica.
Sarah Wilkie
In some ways it seemed a shame to lose the lovely ferny greens, but I wanted to highlight the structures by using B&W – I’m glad you think I pulled it off 🙂
Leanne Cole
I like the way the monochrome makes you concentrate on the structures and patterns of the ferns. They are wonderful Sarah.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Leanne. As we discussed on your post, I think some of these work better than others!
Mike and Kellye Hefner
Fascinating ferns, Sarah. I love that you showed them in black and white – all just beautiful!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Kellye, I’m glad you like the B&W edits 😀
Egídio
What a great choice of photos and edit you made, Sarah! Thanks for the inspiration and beauty you shared.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I’m so glad you like them 🙂
HeyJude
Ferns are very interesting architectural plants and your black and white photos really show this off to perfection
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Jude, I really appreciate that coming from a real garden and plant expert 😀
grandmisadventures
I love the black and white for the ferns- it really brings out the outline and detail of each wispy part of the ferns. Beautiful!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I’m glad my experimentation paid off!
margaret21
What fabulous specimens, Sarah. And they work so well in b/w. The close-ups of the fronds are spectacular.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Margaret, I’m glad you agree the B&W works well 😀
restlessjo
Fabulous!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks Jo 🙂
thehungrytravellers.blog
They are fascinating plants, aren’t they, Sarah? So many different forms and so many of them beautiful. And, as you say, one doesn’t go many places where there are no ferns to be found.
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, fascinating both to photograph and to learn about 🙂 Thanks Phil – hope the trip is going well so far?
Anne Sandler
These are so beautiful in black and white Sarah. You can really see the detail in the plant. I love ferns.
Sarah Wilkie
The bracken can be a nuisance but generally yes, I love ferns too, and they’re so interesting to photograph!
Sue
These constitute a wonderful study of ferns, Sarah!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Sue, it was fun hunting them down in my archives 😀
Sue
Great!
Sue
Good!
Alli Templeton
I don’t think I’ll ever look at ferns in the same way again! These are wonderful! I hadn’t really thought about ferns in terms of how widespread they are across the Earth and how long they’ve been around, but they truly are amazing, aren’t they? I love the shots of the curled fern fronds, especially the close-up, which showcases them as one of nature’s little miracles. Really enjoyed these, Sarah. 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Alli 😊 Great to have your feedback and to know you found this interesting and enjoyable.