A couple weeks ago it was Cherry Festival, and now June kicks off the Highland Springs Lavender Festival at the Highland Springs Resort (where they actually grow various species of lavender and rosemary). Lots of good food & beverages flavored with lavender. My favorite was the lavender custard ice cream. Boy was it yummy!

Despite shooting in the midday sun, I was able to grab quite a few decent shots. In this first series I give you the very aromatic and tasty lavender plant.

#1 Field of blooming lavender interrupted by a piece of antiquated farm equipment.
#2 Macro of a lavender bloom.
#3 A bundle of lavender for sale.
#4 A neat little table decoration with lavender and other flowers. A bit hot on the table but what can ya do in the midday sun?

All photos shot with my Digital Rebel & Sigma 70-300.

And a few other things that made the festival interesting:

#1 A cute little girl all decked out in cowgirl hat and cool shades!
#2 A pregnant woman let me take some pics of her. She asked for my number so that when she has her babies (twins) I can shoot some family portraits for her at this same resort spot.
#3 An old piece of farm equipment decorated with flowers. A very nice touch to the festival grounds.
#4 My wife trying to hide behind the flowers to avoid getting her pic taken, hehe.

Ummm, I love lavendar! That must have smelled wonderful! I love the 3rd pic - the bundle of lavendar and the 4th one - they are like advertisements! The 2nd would be a beautiful and relaxing framed art print!

Hi Janie,

Yes, it did smell wonderful. In fact I bought a boquet of lavender for one of our sick church members who's in the hospital, and our jeep still smells like it! They had all sorts of sprays and oils there too.

By the way, good job on your hula hoop photos. I especially like the one where she has her arm extended holding the hoop. Very different photos for sure.

my favorite is the one on table cloth actually---I like the strkness in the shot ---it helps the colors stand out...

beautiful shots!

How did I miss the shot of your lovely wife?? Tell Claudia the Liles bunch say hello. :)

I like the boquet with the ribbon and shot #2.