Tiny Lanterns on a Mossy Wall
It seems the forest wasn’t finished surprising me that day. After finding the tiny Mycena adscendens carrying that oversized droplet, we stumbled across another colony — same species, same walk, different tree. Only this time they were a little larger (a whole 2–3 mm!) and lined up in a perfect vertical row along a mossy trunk, like miniature lamps climbing their way toward daylight.
The challenge? Light. Or rather the lack of it. The forest was still wrapped in that wet, grey, sleepy atmosphere. Since my MP-E 65mm was already pushed to its limits earlier, I switched things up and used the Sigma 24–70mm Art on the Canon 5DsR. Shooting at f/2.8, 1/400, ISO 3200, I had to rely on every bit of available light — and a steady hand — to keep those microscopic caps sharp while letting the background melt into soft mossy texture.
What I love about mushrooms like Mycena adscendens is how easily they’re overlooked. People step over them every day without ever noticing the tiny worlds unfolding at their feet. But get close enough — really close — and you discover small universes: droplets clinging like glass ornaments, translucent stems glowing against dark bark.
Same forest, same species, same walk… and yet a completely different story.
That’s the magic of photography: the world doesn’t repeat itself unless you ask it kindly.
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Jasper Langedijk
Maikel de Bakker
