TAKE THE COURSE!

Learn how to create and care for bonsai in Manitoba.

The Bonsai Society of Winnipeg presents an introductory course on Bonsai.More...

BONSAI, A GROWING ART IN MANITOBA

There are many excellent sources for learning about bonsai, but if you live on the Canadian prairies, this web site is designed to help you learn to deal with the local climate conditions, so you too can grow bonsai successfully.

Bonsai, a Japanese word pronounced bone-sigh, translates literally as bon (a tray or pot) and sai (a tree or planting). A tree in a pot! But not just any tree, and not just any pot! See bonsai basics.

Bonsai is the name of an art form. Design principles and sound horticultural practices are used to create small trees. These miniature trees, ranging in height from four inches to about four feet, are trained in shallow pots.The object is to create the appearance, expression and even the feeling of a tree in a natural environment, true to scale with a tree in nature.

Share your Photographs

Have you been on a recent trip and photographed trees and landscapes that migh be of interest to your fellow club members? Have you visited an arboretum or a Bonsai Museum? Well, this is the place where you can share your photos with the rest of the club. To submit your photos, copy them on to a CR-ROM and bring the disk to a club meeting.

Tips on Photographing Bonsai Trees

Be sure to keep a photographic record of your trees.
Below, you'll find some tips on photographing your Bonsai trees to their best advantage.

Place the tree against a neutral background. A white bedsheet makes a good backdrop.

Make sure the trees' formal front is facing the camera.

Place the camera so that it is level with the vertical centre of the tree.

Don't crop the tree too tightly in the viewfinder. Leave some space all around the tree.

Choose a vantage point and distance that you can match and repeat when photographing the same tree over time.

For digital cameras, choose a high quality image setting. If you have a film camera, you can submit prints or slides.

If outdoors, pick a brigh, overcast day or if it's sunny, place your tree in the shade to avoid harsh shadows and uneven lighting.

If indoors, light the tree from from the top, and left or right side. Try to avoid harsh shadows created by the automatic flash. If you don't have supplemental lights, try bouncing your flash off a white ceiling.