Azaleas

When we purchased our house 35 years ago, the property came with 300 well-established and thriving azalea bushes. I'm no gardener, and had no idea about how to care for these plants. The first year they bloomed extravagantly. I thought they'd do even better if I fertilized them, so the second year I did just that, and guess what - no blooms. Lesson learned: leave the darned things alone, which is what I have done ever since. And every year they reward me with this gorgeousness.

I took the photo yesterday morning, at first light. Early morning and late afternoon are especially good times for photography, as the light is mellow and warm, and there are no harsh shadows as there would be in the glare of midday. I used a relatively large aperture and telephoto setting, so that the house shutters in the background are blurred out.