Bonsai And Bonsai photoshoot . How to get best photo of your Bonsai. Part 2

In last post we learnt every thing about the Back drop and its colors and how to use that.

Tripod setting for Photo shoot:

Tripod is an important instrument.in photography, if you place your camera on a tripod, , you can easily adjust shutter speed and time with out any jerks. Small jerk also makes your photo shaky without any clear, sharp picture. With Tripod we can adjust of the height the  camera with the same level of the plant with its position and angle. Fix  camera or mobile in tripod and adjust the height of tripod.

camera focus point and should match with pot level. The plant trunk base should and the camera eye will be in the same level. So plant will be visible as it is. we can get true image with out any Parallax error.

If you are looking at plant from an angle the picture you are getting wont be perfect , In out come photo the plant's image will be at an angle  and trunk line can be covered with branches. so its not proper way of getting a good picture.

In the above photograph the focus of camera is going above canopy of the plant. So in out come image of the plant the trunk line looks thin and  young.

camera Angle focus is from the Above the plant

    

Focus of camera in first photo it is on left side, and in second photo it is on right side  

The placement of tripod with camera and plant should be in 180 degrees line. If tripod is on right side or left side the image we are getting is not a actual image.

Tripod helps to take good photos when there is minimum light in the room, that time we need more shutter speed.  When  using camera with hand slight movement also reduces shutter speed, resulting in blur or grainy images.If camera is placed on tripod there wont be any  movement of the hand, On tripod minimum amount of movement resulting  best photos of Bonsai plants. If you dont have tripod there many home made tripod videos are there online, you can check them. you can make your own. The main use of tripod is stability for camera with least motion and best photo shoot..

To be continued in next posts with other tips like tripod placement and exposure etc.....

How to make beautiful bonsai pot Easily at home.

Bonsai is unlimited imagination to your creativity. I tried to create different pot for Premna plant.

A beautiful cement block which is light and can be carved with a chisel, drilling machine, and hexa blade. here everything explained with photos. 

Tools required:

Cement Block before carving

   

                                                                  Started Carving with chisel,and drilling machine removed all the solid materiel from inside 

  

Drainage hole is also made at the bottom of the pot . 

and made some stone like carvings by knife and drilling machine 

If you want you can make drainage holes at the bottom of the pot.

And colors used are acrylic colors, not oil colors.

Video of Bonsai pot making

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rdu_OjProeg&feature=youtu.be

 

the final product is this. then it is colored with Fevicryl brown, black and yellow. First put the black color and on brown , then put yellow color

let the color dry out.

Bonsai is a Beautiful Art there is no limit to our creativity.

Then Nursery Plant Premna  is place inside the pot and soil is added. Now  it is looking as a old wood and the plant  coming up nicely. Any one can do this pot. Shaping premna plant. pruning and ramification will be done depending on the development of the plant just started.

Kokedama / Koke Bonsai Making Easy

Kokedama is a Bonsai holding a plant with moss ball, It is a variation of Bonsai in Japan. Its becoming very popular because of its beauty and low maintenance. Now Bonsai lovers are in love with Kokedama of Japan. its a old traditional art goes along with Ikebana, and Bonsai.

Kokedama is becoming hot gardening topic here I will show how to make kokedama moss ball..

Kokedama originated 30 years back a japanese word ne- rai, means root wash , which means no pot,  This art is also calles as koke - Bonsai. It is changes it style by wrapping with moss and became kokedama means moss Ball. Actually its a one of its kinds of Bonsai.

We can say kokedama as a Eco friendly way of growing plants, because here we are not using any pots.

Kokedama  can be made with out door, indoor, succulents, fruiting and flowering plants.its a beautiful  art for long lasting relationship with the plant and man. In kokedama one  can use  mixed display of plants  or single one according to your taste. The beauty of this Art is  diversified plants ranging from tropical to temperate , succulents to orchids can be selected according to your taste, weather and place.

Materials needed

Plants needed ,

Fern, Pine, Philodendron, Syngonium , Sansevieria , Maple, anthurium, dracaena, Fishbone Cactus, Asparagus, Fish Tail Fern, schefflera plant ,orchids, Anthurium, Caladium, African violet, succulents, Bromelaids, jade, Bamboo.etc...

Bonsai soil + Peat Moss

Keep Bonsai soil and  peat moss ready.

Sphagnum Moss

Sphagnum Moss is needed. keep Moss in water for ten minutes.

scissors 

Jute or Hemp , twine 

For tying the Moss ball. 

!) Keep Bonsai soil  with 15 % of peat moss and keep it ready ,Depending on the plant species we can change adding percentage of the peat moss.
2) Take out  plant from the pot and make Bonsai soil and peat moss little wet and press the soil around the root ball tightly , form a ball like structure around the root by pressing the soil tightly with both palms..

3) Now take wet moss and squeeze out water, put the moss around the soil ball and cover the soil completely with Moss and press out water a little, it will be  comfortable to tie the thread around the moss ball.



4) Take hemp and start tying around the moss ball a little tightly in a manner of 11 to 5 numbers in a clock., There are different styles of wrapping some times with two colored thread or single thread, what is comfortable for you, you can do it in that manner. If you are tying in a angular way in one direction that gives beautiful look to the moss ball. 

5) This kokedama can be made it as a hanging plant or you can keep it on a small stand also.

  

6) Watering depends on species of the plant that made it in to a Kokedama, and also on the season and also the zone where the plant is growing. If your plant is a succulent dip the moss ball in water for 15 to  20 minutes once in a week. It is advised to keep the plant away from scorching sun light.
8) Re potting once in two to three years depending on the root growth. Fertilizers to be used in the liquid form,

Learn More on Visiting Below link You tube Video

Kokedama Making Easy

A Correct Cut While shaping a Bonsai plant

Giving proper shape to a Bonsai plant is most important chapter in Bonsai Art. All Bonsai lovers will think of having a beautiful Bonsai. Beauty to comes to the plant through correct training and pruning methods. They have significant role in giving a pleasing look to a Bonsai plant.  

Training a Bonsai tree is giving a correct cut at correct place that is node of the plant where the leaf starts growing.  Knowing about  function of  the node is more important before making a cut on a Bonsai plant. All plants have nodes and inter nodes. Nodes and inter nodes are important parts of Plant Biology. Without nodes, the plant cannot develop leaves or branches. Even hardwood deciduous trees like Oaks, with life spans of more than 5000 years, and annuals and perennials of herbaceous plants, have nodes and inter nodes. 

  

Above photo shows nodes and Inter nodes of a plant. Here the space between two consecutive nodes  more. Most of the plants have long inter nodes, i.e, here in below picture the space between two consecutive nodes is clearly shown.

     

Plants of different species  have different inter nodal spaces. The Space between Two consecutive nodes that is between two leaves is very less in below photographs. These plant are having very less inter nodal space. 

      

  

     

  This photo shows long inter nodal space   

Where and how to cut a leaf at nodal point 

If the leaves are alternate cut is along with leaf angle                              

The angular cut above the leaf is helps to  prevent water damage  from stem and it heals fast so no disease. And cut looks natural.

If the leaves are opposite Cut will be in between leaves

Nodes are the important functional part of a plant where leaves, branches, flowers, fruits, and aerial roots originate on the stem. Nodes are responsible for proper propagation of the plant. 

Always New branches and flowers will rise from the node of the plant. Below first photo shows growing of a branch from the node above the leaf.

                                                                 Branch is growing from a node of leaf.

In Second photo it is clearly visible of growth of a flower from the node of a plant. There are Axillary buds at nodes of the leaf, they develop in to flowers and branches. 

These are the apical or terminal buds they are developing into flowers from base of apical node of leaf.

When pruning a Bonsai plant or any plant, a cut should  be made above the node, so regrowth of the plant will be proper.  In Bonsai, conventional method of cutting and pruning is always above the node of a leaf of a stem. 

             

                 

To maintain height of a Bonsai plant remove the top bud (apical bud or tropical bud) , then the axillary buds becomes active and many new branches will develops from the leaf axil. Allow the new branches to develop 6 to eight pars of leaves, then remove the top bud of the branch, then there new branches will develop on the primary branch. The plant will have a compact growth with many branches .

                                                 

                            This video explains how to make cut above the leaf .

                    

Inter node is the part or space between two consecutive nodes. Inter nodes carry water, hormones, nutrients from one node to the other.  Any cut made at inter nodal space make that portion of a stem to die back .

                           

Here a wrong cut is happen above the node at inter nodal space ,usually if the cut is made like that, there are chances of die back of that portion will happen.

However, in some plants like dwarf conifers, evergreens, pinus taeda,Bald cypress,Norwey spruce,Thuja occidentalis,Yew, and Boxwood,inter nodes are shorter, which makes the leaves more dense. These plants can be made into ornamental shapes ( art of Topiary) by clipping or by pruning. These plants are also can be made in to Bonsai plants because of their shorter nodes,  they look so beautiful with dense foliage.

                            Leaves with shorter inter nodes         Pine plant under training

     

The response of Bonsai plant is very important after cutting and pruning. In some instances if proper cut is not made at right place there are chances of survival of the plant becomes less. My advice is to study the nature and species of the plant, and follow proper technique that is cut above the node to give a proper shape to the plant. To maintain height of a plant remove top most new buds or leaves of the main trunk line. Then side branches will stat growing. 

I tried to explain with some diagrams

 

On above photo, Apiary or terminal bud is removed on primary Branch. Now secondary branch is growing at the axil of the leaf node. then allow the second branch to grow , let it have some leaves , then one can remove terminal bud. 

This is the Ideal growth of a Plant, But in Nature ideal growth wont be possible always. Then Depending on  development of the branches one has to do cutting and pruning by understanding growth of a plant.  

Bonsai plants are replica of miniature form of  a tree growing in nature. Any time height of the Bonsai plant will remain small when compared to the huge trees.  Training a Bonsai plant is more like an art. 

In this century Bonsai is not only a gardening hobby  Now it is more in to Art.  Always Bonsai is artist's imagination and creativity which makes the Bonsai Tree Stand tall with its beauty among other plants.

Mr. Masahiko Kimura is a great Bonsai artist from japan, he is also called magician of Bonsai His creations are  just like painters brush stokes  which gives a wonderful look to Bonsai plants.  He revolutionized the Art of Bonsai from traditional way of training in to modern Contemporary Art.

https://www.youtube.com/c/ShaillajaKKapilaas/videos?view_as=subscriber

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