-phyto- of a plant; relating to plants ORIGIN from Greek phuton ‘a plant,’ from phuein ‘come into being’

Welcome to PhytoPhoto, a specialist collection of expertly identified botanical, horticultural and environmental photos. Included are a large number of both rare and popular species, in cultivation and the wild. We supply images for book, magazine and catalog use, commercial advertising and the web, in addition to fine art prints.

The image collection covers a vast range of plant types, highlighting characteristic detail in flower and foliage and includes many in situ examples of native species.

Prompt personal search services will generate a custom proof sheet of images meeting your criteria, delivered to your inbox daily. Licensing is simple and easy and include options for single and multiple use or exclusivity. Let us know how we can meet your imaging needs.

Select images are represented worldwide by Garden Picture Library, part of The Photolibrary Group, a leading independent distributor of stock photography with worldwide distribution and offices in London, New York, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Manila, Mumbai and Dubai. View images licensed through GPL here.

About my work

Growing up in the Hawaiian islands and moving to the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State as a child, I have long held an affinity for the beauty of the natural environment. My passion for observing and photographing plants has taken me over the entirety of North America from the Yukon to the Yucatan and on trips to Asia and South America. In 1997 I joined the famous Heronswood Nursery where for six years I worked as Propagator and produced plants for introduction to gardens world wide. Over the course of four years beginning in 2003 I was Production Manager at Cistus Nursery in Portland, Oregon, a major influence amongst a new vanguard in Western horticulture. This time working with two of the most preeminent and immense plant collections in the country, in addition to the continuing quest to contend with plants in their native habitat, led in 2007 to my founding of the image resourcing company PhytoPhoto.

The opportunity to become acquainted with a truly incredible diversity of plant material over a vast range of environments coupled with a passion for finding the essential elements of each is culminated in PhytoPhoto. The work of photographing the plant world has a foot in many disciplines, at once an artist, botanist, photographer, nomad, and increasingly, a skilled technician of both the ever-changing nomenclature and the even more mercurial tools of imaging. It ain't easy being green.

All of the images currently available via PhytoPhoto are painstakingly identified using the most current accepted nomenclature. Often, this is a more time consuming process than that spent taking the photos. This system of accessioning creates an archive that is searchable, allowing me to quickly cater to individuals, publications, institutions and companies in need of accurate botanical images.

My work has appeared in such publications as Fine Gardening, Horticulture, Country Living, Better Homes and Gardens, The American Gardener, Canadian Gardening, NW Home and Garden Magazine, Pacific Horticulture, Homes+Gardens Northwest, Portland Spaces, Washington Trails, Herbolaria de Chiapas,The Oregonian and Hardy Plant Society of Oregon Bulletin. PhytoPhoto images have also been featured in the nursery catalogs of Heronswood, High Country Gardens, Plants Delights, Terra Nova and others. Books include the excellent guide Wildflowers of the Pacific Northwest and Black Plants, both from Timber Press, New Trees from Kew Press the new Sunset Western Garden Book of Edibles. Articles on plant exploring can be seen at Planetplant and check out the photo contest at Gardening Gone Wild.

Image Index and Availability

Please view the galleries page for an overview of the collection. For specific taxa check the downloadable .pdf availability list. There are always more images in the pipeline and I welcome custom requests. Simply send a query at any time to info@phytophoto.com. Thanks and best regards! -Josh