Something very special happened today. I was contacted by a person who asked if I’d be interested in photographing the fairy slipper, or calypso orchid (Calypso bulbosa). Say what?! This orchid is very rare and I had known that it was borderline possible that there was one place nearby where they might be growing, but my intel was years old and I was sure that they’d be gone by now. This is the southernmost location for the flower in Sweden, but it doesn’t really get common anywhere in this country. Anyway, suffice it to say that I was indeed interested in seeing this flower. I mean, nevermind photography, just to see it. Imagine my amazement at seeing these flowers in surprisingly big numbers, there on the forest floor. This has got to be the most exciting flora encounter in my history as a flower photographer (or, ever)! It was late evening, overcast weather and dark forest so I was shooting at ISO 1600, cue lots of noise in the image. I don’t care. These could be the worst photographs I’ve ever taken. It doesn’t matter – I got to see the calypso orchid. It doesn’t get better than this!