Poppy Fields - Lancaster, CA

Poppies report 4/15/10 - The whole area in and surrounding the Poppy Reserve is out in FULL FORCE!  The whole area blankets with bright orange poppies.  Definitely a great time to visit whether you are into photography or not.  Talked with some local farmers and they suspect that the blooming season will last much longer this year, probably well into May due to a good rainy season.  But you'll never know what mother nature will do, better get it out of your system sooner than later.

You'll see great patches within a 5 miles radius from the Poppy Reserve.  My favorites are along Ave. I, several miles east of the reserve; a farm on Ave I with great abandoned farm machinery; the first turn-off to the right from the Poppy Reserve into a dirt road (about 1/2 mile down); and a big patch of wild flowers as you reach Elizabeth Lake Road, to your right.

If you do visit the farm, please stop and ask the owner's permission before entering the premise to photograph.  The "No Trespassing" sign is there for a reason.  The owner is very nice, so just ask, then you'll have free reigns to the whole place.

Arrive early in the day.  I got there around 8:30am, and by 9am the poppies were opening up to the warm sun.  There was almost no wind this early in the morning.  once it reach 10:30 or 11am, the breeze started to pickup, but still do-able.

By the time I went to the Elizabeth Lake location, it was already 12:30pm.  The sun was a little toppy but it still worked.  So I packed my bag and started hiking to the top of the hill.  Not too far off the road, definitely off the beaten path.  After a short hike up, I came across this spot.

I snapped a couple, then had my packed lunch.  Nice and peaceful.

I traveled with my standard camera gear, my Fuji G617 with Fuji Provia 100F film, and the Canon 5D.

Definitely bring your polarizer to help with the contrast and saturation.  The ND
Grad came in handy to darken the sky when needed.  I am not a big fan of doing much adjustment in post, so I tried to do as much in the fields as possible.

Make sure you drink plenty of water and cover yourself up from the sun.  If you have any question, please let me know and I'll do my best to help you out.  Have fun!