As long as we're on the topic of pretty places in Florida, I should tell you about one of my favorite "secret" places: Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in Delray Beach (on the southern east coast, just north of Boca Raton). I've always had a fascination with Japanese gardens and Morikami is one of the best outside of Japan; in fact, Morikami is ranked 8th among more than 300 Japanese Gardens outside Japan by the Journal of Japanese Gardening. It's a fascinating and extremely peaceful place to wander and it's a landscape photographer's dream--the park is loaded with broad landscapes, water view, intimate Japanese-inspired vignettes and very pretty gardens. There is even a beautifully landscaped manmade waterfall that I've photographed many times (and I'm using photos of it in my new book "Exposure Photo Workshop" that is due out in March 2008).
In addition to being a great outdoor photo subject the Morikami Museum offers an absolutely fascinating house museum tour and the gallery has a rotating permanent exhibit of more than 5,000 pieces (many of which can also be viewed online). I was able to bring in a tripod, but always check first. I would plan on spending at least 2-3 hours at the gardens, preferably longer.
Photo advice: Bring a wide-angle to medium-telephoto zoom (a lens in the 28-105mm range in 35mm is ideal) and shoot early and late in the day when the lighting is soft and the colors of the gardens are most intense. Be sure to check the Morikami site for hints about what is in bloom and any special events happening.
beautiful sand patterns for a cat to scratch around in
Posted by: Sailor | March 02, 2008 at 11:38 AM