About

Mike (at left, age 4ish) with the director of the Dallas Garden Center.

Mike McRoberts

The Flower Photography Guy

Mike is a macro flower photographer based in Fort Collins, Colorado. His passion for horticulture and nature inspired him to pick up a camera and begin shooting macro photos of flowers in 2008. Since then, he has captured thousands of images of flowers, insects, gardens, and nature.

Mike has had a passion for flowers for as long as he can remember. Growing up in Dallas, Texas as the son of the Garden Editor for the Dallas Times Herald, he was constantly surrounded by appreciation for the garden. Sharing his mother’s passion for nature, Mike graduated from Texas A&M University with degrees in Horticulture and Agronomy. His interest in photography was sparked in the 1980s when he received a film camera as a graduation gift and captured images of native Texas bluebonnets to share with his mother.

Mike would go on to become a civil engineer and move to Colorado, where he found a home capturing flowers at the CSU Annual Flower Trial Garden. His passion for macro flower photography eventually evolved from a hobby into a way to meaningfully contribute to his local community. He has volunteered with Plant Select, providing photos of their water-wise plants to help the organization. He has been involved with the horticulture program at CSU, and is a frequent visitor of both the Annual Flower Trial Garden and the Perennial Garden. He now shares his photography by selling notecards, prints, and other gifts on Etsy (VIEW THE SHOP).

He hopes his images will inspire people to appreciate the beauty of flowers and nature all around us.

“ Helping people see, recognize, and appreciate the beauty of horticulture and nature.”

The Purple Iris

Edith Gaye Hanby McRoberts was an avid gardener and a popular garden writer for the Dallas Times Herald. She was compassionate and enthusiastic, and shared her love of nature with her sons. When she died of cancer at the age of 59, she left behind many friends and a beautiful garden at Mike’s childhood home in Garland, Texas. As the years went on, the garden became overgrown but still bloomed every year with beautiful perennial flowers. Eventually it was sold.

In the garden were several bearded purple irises. Wanting to add a piece of their mother’s garden to their own homes, Mike’s brother asked the new owners of the house to collect some of the irises. He planted some in his Texas garden, and brought a few up to Colorado to live in Mike’s yard. Every year, the irises here bloom vibrant and full, bringing a piece of Edie Gaye with them.

Edith knew the power the gardens and flowers could have in her community. She always shared her passion with others. She never wavered in the joy she experienced in the garden. What she knew and shared was a simple truth: flowers make people happy.