Blooming Beardtongue Photos From The Wasatch Mountains

Two different Beardtongue species – Nikon D500, f9, 1/2000, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

Two days ago I focused on wildflowers I found high in the Wasatch Mountains and this morning I am sharing blooming Beardtongue photos from that morning.

The Beardtongues I photographed are from the Penstemon genus. Some I believe to be Wasatch Beardtongues (Penstemon cyananthus) and the others may be Leonard’s Beardtongues (Penstemon leonardii) but I don’t know for sure.

There are many different species of penstemons that grow in the Wasatch Mountains and I am not an expert at identifying them and I won’t pretend to be. Any assistance with identification would be greatly appreciated.

Summer frost on a Penstemon – Nikon D500, f10, 1/640, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

When I first saw the blooming penstemons two days ago some of them had frost on the blossoms. I saw a a low of 31°F that morning so the frost didn’t surprise me much.

Frosty summer Penstemon – Nikon D500, f10, 1/640, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

This photo is the same as the one above it I just cropped it tighter to show the frost on the flowers. It was officially the first day of summer but summer in the high country can mean frost or even snow.

Wasatch Mountain Beardtongue in bloom – Nikon D500, f10, 1/640, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

As the sun rose the frost melted and the droplets of water on the beardtongues sparkled in the morning light and in turn that caught my attention.

Summer flowering Beardtongues – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 640, -0.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

Taking the time to photograph the blooming wildflowers lifted my spirits and made me feel happy. I photographed flowers long before my obsession with photographing birds took over my life.

Beardtongue blossoms – Nikon D500, f9, 1/1250, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

There were so many blooming beardtongues two days ago it was a challenge trying to decide which ones to photograph so I let my eyes do the choosing.

Blooming Penstemons on the first day of summer – Nikon D500, f10, 1/2000, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I used to call wildflowers blooming like this “a riot of wildflowers” but the word riot now has so many negative connotations in my mind and probably other minds too.

Beardtongues flowering in the Wasatch Mountains – Nikon D500, f10, 1/1600, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

Instead I’ll think of the blooming wildflowers as joy blossoming on the mountain slopes. They certainly bring me joy.

I believe that these are Wasatch Beardtongues. The blues, pinks and purples in the individual blossoms were a delight to see.

Blooming Beardtongue close up – Nikon D500, f10, 1/1600, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

These blooms were closer to the road so I was able to take close up images of them. Why wouldn’t I?

I wish I had been able to photograph bees, butterflies and or hummingbirds at the flowers but none of those showed up. It might have still been too chilly when I took these images.

Flowering Penstemons in Summit County – Nikon D500, f10, 1/1250, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

As I took photo after photo of the blooming penstemons I thought of how beautiful they all were. There seemed to be more of them this year than last and that may be due in part to having some moisture this spring.

Penstemon blooming in the Wasatch Mountain Range – Nikon D500, f10, 1/640, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I took more wildflower images than I did bird photos two days ago. I was glad that I did at the end of the morning.

Blooming Beardtongue – Nikon D500, f10, 1/640, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I thought of my best friend Patty and how we used to go out to photograph flowers and insects in Florida together. We had so much fun wandering around looking for flowers and insects to focus on.

Penstemon in bloom in Summit County – Nikon D500, f10, 1/640, ISO 640, -1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

At the end of my morning in the mountains I felt lucky to have been able to see, enjoy and photograph all of these wildflowers.

Life is good.

Mia

Click here to see more of my flower, shrub and tree photos.