More tulip pics by Leendert Blok – very early form of color photography. It’s not easy to photograph tulips, and having digital photography as a tool makes it more difficult still – every picture one takes could have been that slightly different one, and better for being different, maybe. With the older techniques, the thing was as  it was, and marvellous just because  colors on a photo were a marvel in themselves.

I’m engaged in photographing all tulips in my garden – did I mention I have 17 different varieties? A wonderful riot of color in all forms and shapes. Smallest one is the Tulipa Tarda – hard to believe that from these tiny jewels giants like the parrot tulips are descended.