Soggy photographer catches milkmaids in the act

Rain-dancers, it worked. Yesterday's walk on San Pedro Ridge in San Rafael revealed a meadow of milkmaids (Cardamine californica). These members of the mustard family are often

the first showy spring wildflowers to poke up out of the spreading green. Look for tiny pompoms of white or blush pink on a long (about 1-ft) thin stalk above a whorl of scalloped leaves.

I have an funny memory of milkmaids. We were doing a photo shoot about Marin trails in spring, and needed to show how pretty the trails could be. We headed out to China Camp State Park, where we set up two models on a narrow trail that wrapped around the top of a lush meadow, dotted with cheery milk maids. Perfect. Models ready, the Fairfax-based photographer, Ben Davidson, gamely tromped down through the little meadow to get his shot. Belly-down, he found a nice way to get the nodding wildflowers in the front of the shot. Ten minutes later, a few passes by the models, and we had a wrap. Ben stood up. From collarbone to knees, he was completely, utterly soaked. Mud-streaked. A mess. He didn't want to tell me that the lovely meadow I'd ask him to shoot was more like a peat bog. Photographers can be remarkable troopers.

Photo (1): Harriot Manley