Agapanthus

This, my 200th blip, is a celebration of flowers which have been an inspiration and set me the challenge of finding new ways to photograph them. Agapanthus (African lily) is both sculptural and architectural, with statuesque stems topped with balls of intensely coloured flowers. Despite their glamorous looks I have been told in the garden centre (see 14th July) that they are low maintenance and may survive a mild winter outdoors in Scotland. However I would hate to lose it and will bring it into the conservatory in its pot come the first frosts.

I shot from below to emphasise the long stems and show the blue sky and high wispy cloud. This is the sunniest July I can remember! It's a classic agapanthus with cobalt-blue flowers and a prominent darker stripe in the middle. It has about a dozen stems but I selected two outside ones and used a mild paint daubs filter to give a slight painterly look.