The Truth About Orchid Photos Over the years

The Truth About Orchid Photos

Over the years, we have had many inquiries about flower color at Phoenix Orchids. Since we are breeding for color (mostly red and yellow), this seems only natural. When discussing one of our awarded stem propagations with a potential buyer, we usually defer to the American Orchid Society (AOS) award description for an objective description of the flower color. Of course, no words can do justice to a fine orchid blossom.

With the advent of the Internet, literally thousands of color photographs of orchid flowers are available for everyone to view. These photographs are great for consumers so that they can get a better idea what they are buying. However, if you expect a plant that you purchased to look exactly like the photo you saw on the Internet, you may be in for a surprise.

It is our belief that an informed consumer is the best type of customer. So, for the benefit of orchid consumers everywhere, we'd like to do our best to set the record straight with regards to orchid photos.

Our Photographic Goal
At Phoenix Orchids, the photos that we take are an attempt to capture the flowers at their peak under our growing conditions. After all, we are attempting to show off our plants.

Flower Variation
The exact color of a flower depends on many factors including the age of the flower, plant culture and the maturity of the plant. Flowers of the same plant can also vary from one blooming to another – not just color, but size and form as well. Some of our plants bloom in both spring and summer and the blossoms are usually larger and more colorful in the spring. However, in the summer they frequently have more flowers. As flowers age, some changes can occur to the color – usually fading, but sometimes darkening. Also, as some flowers age, their form changes – some recurve, for example. We generally try to photograph fresh flowers that are at their peak.

Film Variation
It is difficult to capture colors accurately on film. This is especially true of reds and purples. The American Orchid Society (AOS) published an article titled Foto Foolery in Orchids magazine (November 1998) that illustrated the variation in color that was due solely to the use of different film. In many cases, the color was dramatically different from the true flower color. We typically use Kodachrome 64 color slide film because it has been our experience that it produces good color reproduction. This was confirmed in the AOS article.

Light Variation
Variations in light can make a dramatic difference in the color of photos. If you doubt that this is true, you can prove it to yourself very easily. Just take a grey card and photograph it under fluorescent light, incandescent light, mid-day natural light and late day natural light. Then take a look at the photos. You'll swear that you photographed four different cards! If you are viewing photographs on your computer, the light source around your computer can affect color also. We photograph our flowers under color corrected lights. This prevents the flowers from appearing more yellow than they really are.

Digital Variation
For our web site, we scan our color slides to create digital images. Then we adjust the images electronically to get the best representation that we can get for a particular flower. Finally, we save the photos in a compressed (.jpg) format and post them on our web site. The quality of the scan is affected by the quality of the scanner, the light source and, of course the quality and cleanliness of the photograph. We try to have our photos professionally scanned, but we scan some ourselves at a resolution of 1200 dpi.

Many of these variations can be eliminated by using a digital camera. Unfortunately, while the prices of digital cameras are falling, high quality cameras are still expensive. Our long-term plan for orchid photos is to convert to using a digital camera as soon as prices decline to a point that the purchase can be justified.

All consumers should keep in mind that when they view an image on the Internet, they are viewing a digital image. Imaging software allows digital images to be manipulated very easily. This allows unscrupulous vendors to enhance the appearance of flowers to the point that they appear spectacular but bear little resemblance to the actual blossom. It has been our personal experience that if a photo of a named cultivar looks great, but the plant does not have an award, caution is warranted.

Monitor Variation
If you are viewing photographs on your computer, chances are that your monitor is not continuously calibrated for color. Unless it is continuously color calibrated, the colors will rarely be exactly correct. This is also true of the monitor used to digitize and adjust the photos. Another thing to keep in mind is that the length of time a monitor has been on can cause variations in color as the output of the monitor is not constant (this is known as "color drift"). Also, the type of monitor can affect the color. Currently, flat panel monitors have the worst color reproduction. Our computer monitor was not calibrated, but as a result of the research performed for this article, we now have software that allows us to perform a simple calibration.

Personal Variation
Everyone seems to see color a little differently. In our AOS judging region, you must pass a color recognition test before being admitted to the judging program. Also, color blindness is a documented fact for a portion of the population and degrees of color blindness vary from person to person. In addition, the subject matter that you view can cause variations in perception. If you doubt this, try staring at the United States flag for about 60 seconds and then relax your eyes and look at a white wall. You will see an after image of the flag in colors opposite of the true flag! People who work with digital images professionally frequently stare at a grey card for a while prior to finalizing color adjustments.

Summary
The bottom line is that our photos are intended to be a good representation of what the flowers actually look like when they are at their best under our growing conditions. If you expect the flower color to be identical to what you view on any web site, you may very well be setting yourself up for a disappointment. Also, if extremely fine variations in colors are particularly important to you because you are looking for a very specific color of flower, you should not base your decisions on photographs, particularly photographs that are viewed on the Internet. Even if you see a flower in person, the color on subsequent bloomings can vary for a myriad of reasons.

There are so many variables at work that it is impossible to expect a flower to bloom under your conditions and look exactly the same as something you see on the Internet. On the other hand, if you see a flower on the Internet and find the general color pleasing, you will probably be very happy when you bloom the plant under your conditions - just expect some minor variation in color. Also, be especially cautious of a fantastic photo of a named cultivar if the plant does not have an award.