The Hidden Beauty of Seeds and Fruits

About the author: Levon Biss is a British photographer who works across many genres, including reportage, sport, and portraiture. His passion for nature and photography have come together Microsculpture, a TED talk using a unique photographic process that composites thousands of images using multiple lighting setups to create the final insect portrait. Each insect portrait is created from more than 8,000 separate images.

Praise for The Hidden Beauty of Seeds & Fruits: "The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RGBE) is a venerable scientific institution in Scotland with over three million plant specimens, and 10,000 new ones added each year. Information gathered from the specimens is used to better understand climate change and track conservation efforts, among other purposes. Biss—a British artist specializing in macrophotography and focusing on natural history and museum collections—was invited by the RGBE to photograph examples from the seeds and fruits collection, and his exceptional work is presented here. Full-page close-up views of the plants detail their extraordinary shapes, patterns, and colors, which are truly architectural and sculptural, even otherworldly. Captions include both the local name and Latin designation of each, together with a description of the plant's habitat, characteristics, and uses. VERDICT Children and adults, science-minded and general readers will all be captivated by these remarkable photos. – Library Journal