One of the first harbingers of spring in the Dallas - Fort Worth metroplex is bluebonnet flowers popping up alongside our highways where former First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson, had them planted while her husband, President Lyndon Johnson was in office from 1963 to 1969. Beautification and the seeding of wildflowers one of her prime points of focus during her time in the White House. 

Wildflower seeds were sown, not only in Texas but all across America. She deeply cared about the environment. Partly due to her efforts, the Highway Beautification Act passed in 1965. Now many of the highways all across our nation are blessed with the natural beauty of wildflowers.

Whether you're a native Texan, or a newly minted one, having your portrait, or that of your children, family or dog - even your cat (yes, I've photographed a cat in the bluebonnet flowers) - is a rite of passage in the Lone Star State.

I think everyone loves spring. The pop of blue flowers and green grass are a welcome site after a dry and yellowed winter. The blooms will last about 3 weeks, but because they are a wild flower, they live in fields among the weeds, which can quickly overtake them in height, so getting in early while they stand tall and before bluebonnet hot spots become trampled by enthusiastic photographers and subjects alike. 

This year was about average for blooms, we need rain and a moderate winter for seeds to germinate; we didn't really get either. It was dry and we had over 30 freezes, yet we still had a pretty decent bloom. The wind however, was another story. I just read that the month of April was the windiest on record for the Dallas area and I believe it. For the first time ever, I had to reschedule pet and family portrait sessions not for rain, but for high winds! 

But the bluebonnets will not wait for conditions to be perfect, so we soldiered on over the course of two days through bright sun and high winds to capture so many great pictures of children, dogs and even a few adults in our fields of blue. Below are just a few images from this year's sessions. 

(click on any image to view full screen)