Cloudy and rainy days are the time to get out and photograph nature! The clouds give us a very soft light, even in the middle of the day. It softens the shadows and prevents any glare. The rain not only nourishes the landscape, but it adds a nice decoration to the already beautiful flowers.

We’ve had a quite a bit of rain recently so I’ve had plenty of opportunities. All the photos today were taken in my yard. I don’t like going out while it’s actually raining since I don’t have a protective cover for my camera, but as soon as it stops, I’m outside looking for some good shots.

This photo is right by our house. You can see the limestone wall in the background. I think this plant is a Giant Spiderwort (Tradescantia gigantea). There’s a small bee on one of the flowers.

Giant Spiderwort is a native. The flower color can indicate the soil alkalinity. Bluer flowers indicate acidity and purple or pink indicate alkalinity. That’s neat!

Spiderwort

These are some interesting Salvia in our side yard. They look like Salvia gregii. but I’m not sure that’s right because of the white in the flowers. They might be a hybrid of two different salvias.

Red & White Salvia

Here’s a nice Rain Lily. We probably have hundreds scattered throughout our lawn. I think it’s either an Evening Rain Lily (Cooperia drummondii) or a Hill Country Rain Lily (Cooperia pedunculata).

Rain Lily