Through my research of bromeliad species for various articles and making data files for my own species collection, it became apparent that many species have never actually featured with quality photographs in the Journal of the Bromeliad Society International (JBS) to date. Of course, some species are relatively new to science or are often published in other botanical journals, meaning short timeframes and possible rarity in cultivation are factors that hinder further documentation in the JBS. On the other hand, a number of species could be classified as either 'old' or relatively 'common' in cultivation, and strangely these have also failed to be photographed in the Journal, for reasons I am unsure. Perhaps the photography, developing of film, editing and printing barriers were too laborious or difficult for members in the earlier days of Journal production, or maybe certain species fell out of favour over time with collectors? Perhaps too, some have simply been 'forgotten in the mire' and no-one actually noticed they did not feature in previous years? The other obvious reasons are that there are quite a number of species that are not in normal circles of cultivation, or are so rare in habitat they are difficult to locate and have not been sighted again since their initial discoveries and collections.

Whatever the reasons are, nowadays with various methods and a bit of collaboration, we are in a better position to highlight these absentee species. Advanced photography technology via compact digital handheld cameras, cell phones, tablets and even aerial remote control drones, now allows virtually every grower or explorer to become a "plant paparazzi pro", where we are able to capture and quickly share high resolution, print quality images, almost without limitations. Macro close-up shots in brilliant colour of intricate flower details and zoom shots of plants high in trees or perched on cliffs, are now easily snapped, archived and shared.

Utilizing the 'Word Search' function on the www.bsi.org website under the 'Journal Archive' section (1951-on), allows one...