One Day, I Found a Dancing Star in the Woods

With my backpack loaded with equipment, I entered the woods. Normally, there, I would be photographing roe deer. However, my goal this time was different: to photograph the Dog’s-Tooth-Violet (Erythronium dens-canis) so as to highlight the elegant shape and colorful nuances of this beautiful flower.

This photoshoot was, in fact, my fallback plan for the day. My other outing was canceled at the last minute. In hindsight, I’m glad that it was, because photographing the Dog’s-Tooth-Violet turned into an inspiring experience. It gave me a newfound understanding of the subject, and ultimately, of my approach to photography as a whole.

The Initial Approach: Going Through the Motions

I soon found several Dog’s-Tooth-Violets in these woods, but that didn’t mean my job as a photographer was over. If anything, the process had just begun.

For the first hours of shooting, I devoted myself to finding the most straightforward angle to photograph this beautiful flower. I moved carefully, searching for angles that would enhance the sinuosity of the stem, the delicacy of the petals, and the contrast with the blurry background of the forest. I used a tripod to ensure maximum stability and precise focus, meticulously controlling every detail. I took a series of images, slightly varying the angle, depth of field, and exposure. Each shot resulted from careful evaluation, an attempt to translate the objective beauty surrounding me into an image.

As I mentally reviewed those shots, I knew I would obtain technically valid photographs capable of showcasing the appearance of the Dog’s-Tooth-Violet. Yet, as I worked, a subtle dissatisfaction lingered – a distance between the accuracy of the images I was creating and the emotion that those flowers progressively evoked in me. It felt as if I were merely capturing the surface, unable to penetrate the deeper essence.

The photographs were “correct,” but they seemed soulless to me.

The Reflective Pause: Nietzsche’s Shadow Among the Petals

At a certain point, I felt the need to stop. The pursuit of technical perfection was fruitless. I put down the camera, and, unsure what to do, I decided to lay face down next to a small group of Dog’s-Tooth-Violet. From this close-up perspective, my gaze settled on details that had previously eluded me: the slight ripples of the petals, the delicate down on the stem, and the way the light filtered through it.

I remained still for many minutes, simply observing. It was a slow, contemplative act, free from the urgency to take a photograph. In that silent moment, a quote by Nietzsche that I had read years prior came back to me with surprising clarity: “You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star.”

Contrary to the typical negative connotation of the word “chaos,” for Nietzsche, chaos holds a different meaning. It represents the origin of becoming, the fertile ground from which a new creation, a better order, can arise. Chaos, therefore, is not the negation of order – it may even be considered a preliminary condition for it.

I regarded the Dog’s-Tooth-Violets with new eyes. They were no longer mere objects to be transferred to my camera sensor, but living entities, bearers of an unexpected vital force in their apparent fragility. The curious twist of the stem, the solitary spot on a petal, the unexpected elegance in their simple and wild shape: Everything appeared to me as a manifestation of that “dancing star” evoked by the philosopher. I recognized in those flowers a sort of affirmation of individuality in the heart of the forest.

The Transformation: From Recording to Interpreting

That moment of pause and reflection marked a turning point in my day. My approach changed. I was no longer interested in merely documenting the objective appearance of the Dog’s-Tooth-Violet, but in transforming each shot into a visual interpretation of that “dancing star. ” I had stopped seeking technical perfection to focus on the emotion and sensation that those flowers conveyed to me.

My technical choices began to reflect this new approach. Instead of chasing maximum sharpness on the flower itself, I started to play with shallow depth of field to isolate the subject, creating a sense of intimacy.

I sought out photos that felt raw, with leaves and grass blurred close to the lens. I envisioned those flowers as ballerinas on tiptoe, spinning and twisting gracefully.

The emotions I felt at that moment became the driving force behind my photography. I sensed in the flower the potential for the same emotions that the forest makes me feel – a quiet sense of peace, calmness, and even isolation. This translated into a quest for images that isolated individual flowers, surrounding them with negative space and using diffusers to soften the light and emphasize their solitude. Furthermore, the vitality and springtime explosion of growth motivated me to seek compositions with a sense of upward movement.

The Dancing Star – New Photographic Directions

The desire to represent this vision of the Dog’s-Tooth-Violet as a “dancing star” guided my stylistic choices in unexpected ways. I abandoned the rigidity of frontal and symmetrical compositions to embrace more dynamic and unusual angles, seeking perspectives that suggested movement. I got very close to the flowers, working freehand or positioning the camera directly on the ground. I would have dug down further if it had been useful.

The dance of energy became a central element of my visual study. I aimed to represent the vitality of the flower using light and depth of field. I was no longer looking for a faithful, textbook-style reproduction, but rather aiming for a transfiguration and interpretation beyond appearance.

The flower’s shadow of fragility emerged in my images through the use of selective focus and soft lighting, pointing to the transience of beauty. I sought to capture that moment between flowering and decline. Organized chaos became a guiding principle in my compositions.

As I continued photographing the Dog’s-Tooth-Violets, I began to integrate unsettling elements into the scene, creating a conversation between the main subject and the surrounding environment. No longer was I searching for the “perfect” flower with vivid, symmetrical petals free from marks. Instead, the disturbance and imperfection of these flowers – inherent elements of wild nature – became integral parts of my vision.

My day in the woods, which began with documentary-style flower photography, evolved into a reflective experience. Referencing the poetic memory of that phrase by Nietzsche, and contemplating the beauty of flowers, I experimented with new techniques to capture them – aiming to move beyond simple documentation and toward a personal interpretation and vision.

And that was how I began to see not just the Dog’s-Tooth-Violet, but also my entire approach to photography, in a new way.