The clapping poppy – 1 picture and 1000 words

maipenquynh on 22. November 2024

Photos that get the privilege of being shown as a single image also get the privilege of being given a particularly thoughtful title. That's a very entertaining task for me.

How did the photo shown above, which was recently shown as a single image , come to its name?

The poppy photographed here is the corn poppy - if it were a colour film, this photo would glow red. Note from the translator: corn poppy in german is 'Klatschmohn' - the second part of the word, 'Mohn' is poppy while the first part of the word, 'Klatsch' has the same root as the verb 'klatschen' which means to clap.

I wasn't convinced by ‘Klatschmohn’ as a title. Hoping for an idea passing by, I looked at the picture more or less intensively.
And indeed. With a little imagination, I thought I could see that the two inner petals touching were photographed in a moment of a clapping motion. And shortly afterwards, the two petals would separate again to get ready for the next clapping movement. And that is how the title of this image was born.

In case you're also wondering: Is the poppy called like that in german because the petals can actually clap? Completely wrong.
After a little bit of research, I learnt that if you form a ring with your thumb and forefinger, place a poppy petal on top to cover the ring and hit it flat with your other hand, you'll probably hear a Clap!. One reason more to looking forward to the next poppy season 😋