The transition into autumn occasionally may make for a dreary and colorless landscape, but for Atlanta photographer Betty Edge, the flowers are always in bloom.

After a career in marketing/advertising and a stint as a full-time mom, Edge found herself with more time on her hands as her children grew older.

Rediscovering her latent passion for photography, Edge began taking classes at The Showcase School in Atlanta.

What was once a burgeoning hobby has now turned into a blossoming second career as an artist.

The inspiration for her artwork just happened to be growing in her own backyard.

Edge, who cultivates her photography subjects in her own garden, finds aesthetic appeal in both the life and death of flowers.

“I love their shape, texture and colors. I enjoy capturing an image of a flower as it unfolds in its full glory,” Edge said. “And then when it is dying, it is so very graceful.”

Edge’s photos are a unique visual experience as many of her pieces are printed on sheets of aluminum. By doing so, the color photos have a shimmering three-dimensional look.

“I wanted to have a more contemporary and original look,” Edge said, adding that the process took a substantial amount of time at the printers. Her collection took more than a year to produce.

Unfortunately, the end result didn’t always achieve the look Edge wanted.

“Sometimes a photo just doesn’t work,” she said. “It doesn’t achieve that vibrancy.”

Of the photos she approves of, Edge said she hopes to have captured the flower at an interesting angle and opened the audience’s perspective on the natural world.

“I want to make the viewer see a flower in a different way,” Edge said. “Instead of just seeing a petunia, I want people to think ‘That’s a really interesting design,’ or wonder, ‘Is that really a petunia?’”

A blend of soft nature framed against hard metal, 30 of Edge’s flower photographs will be on display at the State Botanical Garden’s Visitor Center and Conservatory from Sept. 30 to Oct. 24.