Affair of Flowers

This impressive book is richly illustrated with 91 gorgeous macro photographs—of flowers, and also some of their pollinators—by John Rodrigues, an artist who has taken that time to truly see. 

We invite you to sit back, maybe with a cup of hot Chamomile tea, and indulge in these images—taking the time to truly see these flowers, and to appreciate their inherent majesty. John Rodrigues takes an old lens and new camera and gives us a new look at an old photographic subject.

John Rodrigues grew up on California’s Central Coast then moved down south in 1979 where he picked up his love for photography. He worked as a photographer for Motown, and pursued photography jobs in the area. He took headshots for aspiring actors, photojournalism assignments for local papers, and of course some nice family pictures. From the very beginning of his career, his favorite subjects have been landscapes and nature. For 25 years Rodrigues co-owned Boulevard Camera, a mom-and-pop photo store, lab, and studio. Back then he made it his job to know every type or piece of camera equipment. He particularly loved Canon’s fast 55mm f/1.2 lens made in the 1970s―that lens stuck out particularly, and years later led to a photographic epiphany that changed the way he worked. The thought process was: what if he coupled the old Canon lens with a modern mirrorless camera? He was using the SONY A7R IV, and it became the perfect vehicle to meld old technology with new using a simple adapter to create a whole different way of seeing flowers. This allowed for a “live view” screen that gave license to see his subjects in real time― he could move in and out of petals, stamens, and leaves like a mini spaceship. These images with a narrow field of focus had the “look” Rodrigues had been striving to achieve throughout his whole career.

Stephen Buchmann is a pollination ecologist specializing in bees. He is an adjunct professor with the departments of Entomology and of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona. A Fellow of the Linnean Society of London, he has published over 150 peer-reviewed scientific papers and eleven books, including The Forgotten Pollinators that warned in 1996 about global pollinator decline. Buchmann is a frequent guest on NPR’s All Things Considered, and Science Friday. Reviews of his books have appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Time and Discover magazines and other national publications. He lives in the Sonoran Desert of Tucson, Arizona, with his life partner, estate planning attorney Kay Richter.

Patricia Z. Smith is a photographer, poet, and global activist for peace and women’s rights. Her second book PHOTOSCAPES AND THE EGG evolved from her first book COMPLEMENTS: eloquence of small objects that launched as a #1 Hot New Release at Amazon. Both combine her luscious unique photos, poems, and text to create stories, stretch the imagination, and bring insight. Both are published by Goff Books.