Lake Lilies #15164

The Story

In this black and white photograph, a bed of blooming water lilies floats easily like the clouds above the lake. The sky and water go black in infrared photography, so the white cloud puffs make Holstein cow sky against the black. It blends closely with the next lower layer of shadows laying across the forested mountains.

The mirror smooth black water reflects some of the white clouds above. The sky brought down to earth, if you will.

The lowest layer in the picture is the foreground water lilies covering the black water. Further out, a few other floating mats of plants lie in this shallow lake. The blooming water lilies emerge in the strong summer sunlight, but the flowers are hard to see here. Like the mountain trees in the background, all the floating lily pad green goes white in infrared.

Location: near Hollidaysburg, Blair County, Pennsylvania. Picture and story © Andrew Dierks