The Kapok Tree (Ceiba pentandra) - Key West, Florida

The Kapok Tree (Ceiba pentandra), also called the Ceiba tree or Silkcotton tree, is one of Key Wests most photographed trees. It is a tropical tree, native to Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, northern South America, and tropical west Africa. The tree is also known as the Java cotton. It is a sacred symbol in Mayan mythology. The tree grows to 130 feet tall and has a very substantial trunk up to 3 m in diameter with buttresses. The leaves are compound of 5 to 9 leaflets, each up to 20 cm and palm like. Adult trees produce several hundred seed pods. The pods contain seeds that produce an oil used locally in soap and that can be used as fertilizer. The seeds are surrounded by a fluffy, yellowish fiber that is light, very buoyant, resilient and resistant to water. The fiber was previously used in insulation, stuffing, and life jackets (known as Mae Wests during WWII). The wood is soft and is called bentang in Africa. It is used for making dugout canoes, carvings, and caskets.

Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.

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Taken in: United States / Florida / Key West (show map)

Taken on: May 15, 2014

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The Kapok Tree

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Sets appears in: • Key West, Florida • HDR more » • Landscape, Outdoor, Nature Photography « less

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Camera: Nikon D5200, f/7.1, 18mm, ISO 200 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D5200
Aperture:	f/7.1
Focal Length:	18mm
ISO:	200
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS6 (Windows)
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