Morning Routine in Monochrome

11 days ago

This morning felt calm and generous. Rain had passed through before I woke up, and the garden was still carrying the last of it, tiny droplets holding on to petals and leaves like quiet souvenirs. That’s my cue to head out with the camera. Scenes that look ordinary on dry days suddenly come alive after rain, texture shows up, shapes get clearer, and every surface seems to breathe.

I worked these frames in black and white because it amplifies what I love most about mornings like this, contrast and detail. Color can be distracting when the story is really about tone, the shine of a wet hibiscus petal, the soft glow along a slender bloom, the way a single leaf stands out against a busy hedge. Converting to monochrome lets me push the highlights where the droplets catch the light and nudge the blacks down to deepen the background, so the subjects float a little more. It’s a simple approach, but it reveals patterns and veins I might miss otherwise.

What I enjoy about photographing right after rain is the sense of timing. These droplets won’t stay, a breeze, a bird, or the first strong sunbeam will take them away. So I slow down, breathe with the scene, and make a few careful frames before the moment moves on. It’s a small practice that keeps me grounded, pay attention, look closer, and appreciate what’s here now.

I’m sharing these four images as a little reminder to myself and anyone reading, freshness doesn’t always need a grand landscape. Sometimes it’s a petal with raindrops, a leaf shining in soft morning light, or a plant that suddenly looks new because the day just washed it clean. Grateful I caught these before they slipped back into the everyday.