Sometimes it pays to look around you.  Or, to have friends with beautiful flowers.  Today I was fortunate to do both.  After traveling all around Arizona looking for wildflowers it was nice to find some right in your own backyard.

With a touch of a cold we decided to walk around our complex instead of normal walk around the neighborhood. Near the end of our walk we saw our friends sitting in their front entryway sipping a beer.  After coaxing an invitation we sat down for a drink and some relaxation.  Right next to me was this ingesting bush with fascinating purple flowers – a French Lavender (Lavandula stoechas).  Luckily we live just a few homes down the street.  After finishing my drink I headed home for my camera and macro lens (60mm).  Rushed right back for a few shots.

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2013-03-28 French Lavender-26

Fast forward to the next morning.  We found a beautiful patch of poppies at another friend’s home.  Luckily he was away visiting in Minnesota so we could set up on his driveway.  Again with the macro lens, I tried some different angles. The yellow poppy against the blue sky is a nice look!

Moral of the story – you don’t necessarily have travel all over the place for nice photos.  Sometimes they are right under your nose.

Keep your eyes open and good shooting.