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Date Taken: 06/03/2017
Location: Craggy Gardens area of the Blue Ridge Parkway, Milepost 364 near Asheville, North Carolina

Camera: Nikon D810
Lens: Nikon 20mm f/1.8
Focal Length: 20mm
ISO: 160
Shutter: 0.4 sec
Aperture: F/9
Filters: None
Exposure: Aperture Priority
How I Got This Shot: Driving along the Parkway in search of a nice shot of the blooming rhododendrons, I noticed a few thin layers of clouds moving into the Craggy Gardens area. Anticipating great color after the sunset, I quickly parked in the parking area, grabbed my sturdy RRS tripod and walked to an area just north of the parking lot and waited. Luckily the skies lit up nicely during dusk and I was able to grab this shot.

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Date Taken: 08/04/2019
Location: Turkey Knob at Parkway Cabins, Boone, North Carolina, in the High Country

Camera: Iphone 7 Plus

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Date Taken: 10/06/2018
Location: Roan Highlands

Camera: Sony a7iii
Lens: 28-70 f3.5-5.6
Focal Length: 53mm
ISO: 800
Shutter: 1/125
Aperture: f16
Filters: None
Exposure: Aperture
How I Got This Shot: Waited for the light to illuminate the fuzzy dead blooms of whatever plant this was, using a tripod!

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Date Taken: 08/05/2017
Location: Near Milepost 430

Camera: Nikon D50
Lens: 105 mm Sigma macro
Focal Length: 105 mm
ISO: 200
Shutter: 1/2500
Aperture: 3.5
Filters: None
Exposure: Aperture Priority
How I Got This Shot: I was headed south on the Parkway when I saw this flower in the right-hand margin. There was an overlook within 30 yards beyond the cut where the flower grew, so I parked and walked back. I think this plant comes back every year, as I saw one in the same spot in 2018, but there are lots of lilies all along the parkway between Mt. Pisgah and Waterrock Knob, and others scattered more infrequently elsewhere, so similar flowers should not be hard to find.

I took this shot lying on my back halfway in the road and halfway in the grass margin, which was very narrow between the road and the cliff. It was about 1:44 PM and the sunlight was coming down through the lily from the left. The flower was positioned against a stone cut, but the background colors were medium gray and green; I have no idea why the background came out so dark from this angle, and in most of my other shots, it did not.

While I took this photo, I had someone watching the road to warn me of oncoming traffic, and I strongly recommend against lying down in the Parkway to shoot photographs without an assistant to keep watch, because the Parkway is very busy, and it’s easy to forget where you are when you’re absorbed in setting your camera and trying to focus.

For best results with Turk’s Cap lilies, I recommend shooting from below, slightly below, or parallel to the flower, and trying to shoot at an angle where light is coming through the flower from the side rather than shooting directly into the sun or shooting with the sun behind you. The lilies light up and glow like stained glass when direct sunlight comes through the petals. Almost invariably, shooting these flowers with the light behind you gives relatively flat and uninteresting results. It can take time and patience to find flowers that are located so that the sunlight is shining through them at an angle you can capture, but it’s well worth your while. This method has given me dozens of amazing photos of this type of lily, and it’s one of my favorite wildflower subjects.

I start looking for these flowers in early July. Blossom season lasts about a month. Some seasons, they bloom a couple of weeks early and sometimes they’re a couple of weeks late.

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Date Taken: 10/13/2016
Location: Craggy Gardens, Milepost 364.6

Camera: Nikon5100
Lens: nikkor55-300mm
Focal Length: 55mm
ISO: 125
Shutter: 1/320
Aperture: f5.6
Filters: none
Exposure: A
How I Got This Shot: got it from overlook at Craggy Gardens Visitor Center

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Date Taken: 10/02/2017
Location: Looking northward from the Yohnalossee Overlook, MP 303.9, near the Linn Cove Viaduct

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Date Taken: 06/21/2017
Location: Roan Mountain, Carvers Gap hike

Camera: Sony A7Rii
Lens: sel1635z
Focal Length: 28mm
ISO: 160
Shutter: 1/15
Aperture: f13
Filters: None
Exposure: Aperture Priority
How I Got This Shot: Went to see the rhododendron, but they were mostly gone. The consolation was the “lower” trail that had lots of Fire Azalea in bloom. Hike from Carver’s Gap.

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Learn about Flame Azalea and more Blue Ridge wildflowers in our Nature Guide.

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Date Taken: 06/09/2017
Location: Sugar Mountain

Camera: Sony A7
Lens: sel50f18f
Focal Length: 50mm
ISO: 250
Shutter: 1/10
Aperture: f11
Filters: none
Exposure: Aperture Priority
How I Got This Shot: This area is a little hidden to get to. Set up an hour before sunset. Someone stepped out to watch the sunset, and I thought it added some scale to the image. Pano of 2 shots.

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Date Taken: 05/24/2014
Location: on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Roanoke, Virginia

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Learn more about wildflowers of the Blue Ridge on our Wildflower Guide & Bloom Schedule.

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