Sunflower
While working in the garden yesterday, I found a sunflower bloom on the ground. I do not know why it fell off the stem. I brought the sunflower inside to scan close up images of its parts. The image to the left is scanned at 100%. If you would like to see the rest of the images, please keep reading.
This particular sunflower blossom is a small one, only 3.5 inches across, counting its petals. It came from a branched sunflower plant. The flower is in what sunflower experts would call stage 5.6. Stage 5 indicates the ray flowers are open. The decimal indicates what percentage of the center disk flowers is open. In this case, 5.6 means 60% are open. A sunflower center consists of many tiny flowers (disk flowers) and row by row, from outside to center, they open. The big yellow petals are the ray flowers; they serve as the landing strip indicators for bees to land. All sorts of bees visit the little flowers.
 |
 |
 |
| 200% | 400% | 1000% |
Halves
After scanning several more images, up to 2000%, I did the next most logical step; I cut the flower in half. Now I will show you three more pictures from the batch of images. The images of the halves seem creepy to me.
 |
 |
 |
| In these images, you can see the developing seeds. | ||
In case anyone is curious, the scanner I have is an Epson Perfection 1200U. I bought it 7 or more years ago. I use the scanner’s twain program in the advanced mode to set the percentages.
I hope you have a lovely day.
Donna Young
"
Awww. that is so sweet. And you have all those..."
Several visitors requested a one-month typeable calendar and so I made one. The calendar is in both doc and pdf format. Only the doc format is typeable.
Wow, those are great images.
I love the ones you cut in half. Never thought of doing that before. Of course, I don’t have any sunflowers to do that with. 
Thanks for sharing the pictures. Now I wish my scanner would talk to my computer. 
Donna, you are just to cool for words!
You did this on your scanner? or with a microscope?
WOW! How do you get your scanner to do that…. I suspect it is a bit fancier than mine…
Barbra-Sue, I used the Twain driver and for the black background, leave the lid open. I would not think my scanner is anything special. I simply go through the twain program when I scan.
Tanya, they were all done on the scanner. I have used my scanner like this for years. It’s a nice and easy way to get an up close look at something.
I was a bit apprehensive when I bought my XP computer. Luckily the company made a driver for my scanner that worked with XP.
“You needed a driver, but couldn’t find one, right? ” No, hubby broke it.
Hubs is looking over my shoulder and he said he didn’t break it. He said I poisoned the computer.
He broke it.
I have an hp laserjet 3330. I can’t find anything like a twain program in it. I’ll have to play with it when it is fixed.
Poisoned it, did you?
In that case, I omitted one bit of information. When I scan a flower or pile of dirt or something, I open an image program first.
Then from the file menu, there is something like “Acquire Image” or “Import.”
After selecting “Acquire Image” or “Import”, I have to choose “Select Source.”
And then, I select my scanner’s Twain.
THEN, finally, I choose “Acquire Image” or “Import” again, and select the twain.
That sounds so complicated but it isn’t. Just have a look at this webpage:
Accessing TWAIN http://donnayoung.org/forms/help/twain.htm
That is just so
Donna.
This is why I love your web site & blog, you make even what seems ordinary into a learning experience for me - and sometimes I pass it on to my kids.
I loved the pictures but even more is the technical stuff of how you do things. I’ll be checking out that TWAIN link and see what that is all about.
Would PhotoShop be a good program to use w/something like this?
I think the split flower is worth framing.
Going now to look at that wonderful webpage.
Elaine, scroll down the page and you’ll see where Donna gave the information for photoshop.
Well as of right now, I can’t do it. I don’t know if it is because my scanner is not hooked up to the computer or not.
I’ll have to make the hubs fix what he broke and come back here and give it a try.
Thanks Donna. As always you’re the best.
Those are really neat. I think the halves are a little creepy too.
They look like little squids ready to burst from their birth place. 
hmmm, will have to see if I can do this with my scanner.
Those images are works of art! Very cool.
The half-sunflowers picture is actually quite interesting and I guess I agree, appealing, in a creepy sort of way.
I’ll be searching for Twain tomorrow.
Donna, there is an art exhibit at the Smithsonian by a guy who does this as his art. I have to laugh…when I saw the exhibit, all I could think was how exquisite the photographs were…then sat and watched a video on how he does it.
Scanner just like you are doing….I was so indignant. As a photographer I kept saying he was cheating….but the images you can get are so striking.
Who knew….You could be doing an exhibit at the Smithsonian.
I would love a print of the cut in half sunflower…..
Here is the exhibit and photographer…Robert Creamer
http://www.mnh.si.edu/exhibits/creamer/
I think you will enjoy pictures…
Thank you for the link Ginger. I did enjoy looking at the images and couldn’t help thinking that I’ve been scanning plants specimens for years and I wouldn’t mind doing that for a living.
I have some of my older scanned specimens on the YoungMinds CD-Rom at Science | Ground Team | Album.
The Bug-Eaten-Oak Leaf is made with my scanner as well as my bug movies.
That is neat, Donna! I wouldn’t mind doing that for a living, either.