Embracing Imperfection: The Beauty of Unrestricted Symmetry and Precision in Nature

Diny Jones

Nov 9, 2024

6 min read

Updated: Nov 22, 2025

Whether wandering through a forest, walking along a street or enjoying the serenity of your own backyard, you become aware of the imperfections, randomness and flaws that make our environment so interesting.

To celebrate this wonderful uniqueness, each week I shall venture out or explore my own surrounds ready to capture nature's imperfections and share their beauty with others.

Week 1 November 10th, 2024

Adzuki beans, lentils and mung beans.

These beans are germinating at different stages producing unusual shapes and forms. They will soon develop into sprouts ending up on my salad plate!

Location: Kitchen bench top in a glass jar.

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens

Light pad

Week 2 November 17th, 2024

Carnival flame (Protea)

The random formation of the spidery stigma emanating from the flower centre produces a display that reminds one of a sea anemone.

Location: Home garden

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens

Light pad

Week 3 November 24th, 2024

Camellia contrast. Two leaves, one near perfect and the other in an advanced state of decay. Which leaf tells the more interesting story?

Location: Home garden

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens

Light pad

Week 4 December 1st, 2024

Plant network. A tangled, intricate network of plant roots tells the story of growth, structure and support.

Location: Home garden, NSW

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens

Week 5 December 8th, 2024

Brown lawn mushrooms. Advancing decay highlights the beauty of these ephemeral tiny fungi.

Location: Front lawn after rain

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens

Week 6 December 15th, 2024

Ephemeral daisies. They bloom, they die, but they are still beautiful!

Location: Potted plant at home, NSW

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens. Light pad.

Week 7 December 22nd, 2024

Rock clinging. Limpets and barnacles cling to the rock face in tiny pools of seawater. The patterns are similar yet unique varying in size, shape and colour.

Location: Werri Beach, Kiama.

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 8 December 29th, 2024

Pine leaf contrast. A freshly fallen leaf provides a striking contrast to a pile of decayed leaves.

Location: Stanley, Victoria

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 9 January 2nd, 2025

Leaf lines. Each line is unique and imperfect but together they form a striking colour pattern.

Location: Wollongong Botanical Gardens

Camera: Nikon D7500.

Week 10 January 9th, 2025

Blemish. The advanced decaying process has added a new layer of beauty and interest to this Camellia leaf.

Location: Back garden at home, NSW

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 11 January 16th, 2025

Tree branch story.

Location: Little River, Tumut NSW

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens.

week 12 23rd January, 2025

Wasp construction site; time is of the essence. Each hexagonal is the same shape but the size varies. Wasps are amazing architectural creators in the insect world.

Location: Little River, Tumut. NSW

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 13 30th January, 2025

Dahlia demise. The faded, tangled and withered petals produce an ephemeral beauty.

Location: Back garden at home, NSW

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 14 6th February, 2025

Torn and tattered.

The final stages of decay set in.

Location: Back garden at home, NSW

Camera: Nikon z7 24-70 mm lens. Light box.

Week 15 13th February, 2025

Artichoke artistry.

Location: Vegetable garden and home studio, NSW.

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens. Light box.

Week 16 20th February, 2025

Eucalyptus leaf gall. These colourful leaf galls disfigure the leaf and eventually result in the destruction of the leaf. They are created by the tree in reaction to wasp larvae which develop inside the leaf.

Location: Moss Vale, NSW

Camera: Nikon D3300

Week 17 27th February, 2025

Ready to unfurl. Lily pad leaves tightly curled together before they unravel to produce the large, round, floating pads.

Location: Rhododendron Gardens, Wollongong, NSW

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 18 6th March, 2025

Four leaves. Crab apple leaves in various stages of life found floating in a bird bath. The sunlight filtering through the overhead branches created a wonderful background bokeh.

Location: Back garden at home, NSW

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 19 14th March, 2025

Embryo love. A heart shape containing the outline of an embryo was carved by running water at the bottom of a shallow creek bed.

Location: Charles Darwin walk, Blue Mountains, NSW

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 20 21st March, 2025

Plane tree seed pods in various stages of decomposition.

Location: Stanley, Victoria

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 21 28th March, 2025

Story of the crab apple leaf.

Location: Back garden at home, NSW

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 22 3rd April, 2025

A hint of Autumn, The beginnings of colour change and leaf drop.

Location: Bodycotts Lane, Fitzroy Falls, NSW

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 23 10th April, 2025

Gnarly black weathered tree roots finding their way. Myrtle leaves add a colourful touch of confetti.

Location: Corinna, Tasmania

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 24 17th April, 2025

Mossy magic in the Tarkine. Bright green tips create fairy rings on the forest floor.

Location: Corinna, Tasmania

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 25 24th April, 2025

From the chaos of the forest floor, yellowy orange fungi burst forth depicting the processes of life and decay.

Location: Corinna, Tasmania

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 26 May 1st, 2025

Amanita muscaria on the way out. Found under and near pine trees, and normally a bright red with white spots. The wrinkles and colour gradation add character and beauty.

Location: Bodycotts Lane, Fitzroy Falls

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 27 May 8th, 2025

Pine needle and pine bark chaos. The contrast in texture, colour, size and shape add interest to this image.

Location: Bodycotts Lane, Fitzroy Falls

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 28 May 15th, 2025

Urban invaders. A mossy walkway is gradually being overtaken by invading weeds. The random invasion adds a new perspective and beauty to this path.

Location: Mt. Taranaki, New Zealand

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 29 May 22nd, 2025

Delicate and chaotic. Small Tea tree branches decomposing and beautiful in its fragility.

Location: Nelson Bay, Tasmania

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 30 May 29th, 2025

A hint of Autumn colour amongst leaves covered by mud and silt. A random collection of Eucalyptus leaves spotlighted by a shaft of sunlight.

Location: Southern Highlands, NSW

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 31 June 5th, 2025

Autumn meets Winter. Early morning frost provides texture to the random array of Autumn leaves.

Location: Moss Vale, NSW

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 32 June 12th, 2025

Seeds leftover in possum droppings lie frozen in amongst Autumn leaves.

Location: Moss Vale, NSW

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 33 June 19th, 2025

Cicada trio. All that remains are the empty shells or exoskeleton. Each one is unique, a testament to the nymph that emerged as an adult. A beautiful symbol of rebirth.

Location: Mt Pleasant, NSW

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 34 June 26th, 2025

Camelia blight. Slow death of the Camelia flower due to a fungal attack.

Location: Moss Vale, NSW

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 35 July 3rd, 2025

Autumn leaves floating on a bed of azolla.

Location: 'Retford Park' Bowral, NSW

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 36 July 10th, 2025

Palm fronds

Location: Stanley, Victoria

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 37 July 17th, 2025

Mermaid tresses. Knnown as Neptune's necklace. Hormosira Banksii is found commonly along the SE coast of NSW.

Location: Kiama, NSW

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 38 July 24th, 2025

Azolla floating in cloud reflections.

Location: Rhododendron Gardens, Wollongong

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 39, 31st July, 2025

Bird of Paradise

Location: Rhododendron Gardens, Wollongong

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 40, 7th August, 2025

Goanna tracks in red soil taken at sunrise.

Location: Pullabooka, NSW

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 41, 14th August, 2025

Pine cone waiting to unfold. When the weather is cold and wet, pine cones close their scales to protect their seeds.

Location: Bong Bong track, Moss Vale

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 42, 21st August, 2025

Flood flattened reeds

Location: Bong Bong Track, Moss Vale

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 43, 28th August, 2025

Castor oil leaf, dried. Castor oil plant is a medium to tall shrub with large star-like leaves. It is poisonous to humans, dogs and livestock.

Location: Wollongong, NSW

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 44, 4th September, 2025

Leaf litter, road side

Location: Cethana, Tasmania

Camera: iPhone 13 Pro

Week 45, 11th September, 2025

Portrait of decay. Lily pads in a pond, illuminated by sunlight, show the process and outlines of decomposition. Their beauty lies in the colour variations produced by the decaying process.

Location: Rhododendron Gardens, Wollongong.

Camera: Nikon Z7 24-70 mm lens.

Week 46, 18th September, 2025