Early Stages

I've been trying to get a decent shot of bugleweed for some time. The mass of brilliant purple colour looks so inviting, but difficult to capture it in the way it appears to the eye. My attempts so far seem to result in mostly green leaves and dark gaps between the flowers than the intense profusion of colour that I want.

When I saw the slender beginnings of the nearby astilbes today, I wondered about the unusual colour contrast of bright green and purple. I suppose if you push bright green towards yellow they could be opposite on the colour wheel.

But, it was the out of focus bugleweed that finally seemed to come together enough to make an impression and caught in the evening sunlight only enhanced its brilliance.