John, Great choice of selective focus, this is a really nice shot.
Posted by Wayne Rhodus on March 25, 2008 at 9:39 AM
Some very nice subjects in good light John. I like the choice of selective focus and the dof you achieved. From a personal perspective I would have liked to have seen the point of focus bring the entire main cluster into sharp focus while further blurring the LR cluster so it was totally oof.
Good shot, thanks for sharing!
Posted by Randy Wilson on March 25, 2008 at 2:29 PM
I'm a little reluctant to critique a macro, John, but I like the interplay of the three main groups of flowers and their placement in the frame, and the left/right and front/back balancing. Those few petals in the lower right that are not quite in focus do tug at the eye a bit, and the highest keyed points in the image are out of focus as well. A good job with a difficult subject, it seems to me.
Posted by Randy Wilson on March 25, 2008 at 9:33 PM
I don't know, it looks different on my PC at home in that there aren't any really high keyed spots; so I take that back.
John - I've looked at this several times now and just can't decide what it is that bothers me about this image. Maybe too much purple and the lower bloom on the right a little too oof. Just my 2 cents worth...
Wayne, Randy, and Bill - a sincere thanks for the critiques. Other than questioning just how purple the image was, I wasn't seeing the other flaws. That scares me a bit!
Posted by Wayne Rhodus on March 26, 2008 at 9:47 AM
John, first of all I don't consider this "flawed" and I don't think that's the way to qualify it. In my experience I find it's much easier to overlook something that could be improved in our own images that seems obvious to others.
I spent a good deal of time posting to the Flora forum and getting valuable feedback on my images. I learned a ton from that input but learned even more by observing what others were doing. It's a much tougher subject matter to do well than most give it credit for.
Personally I find groupings like your shot MUCH tougher to compose well than say a portrait or true macro isolation of a bloom.
If you're into flora I would highly recommend visiting that forum often to see the stunning work being done there and also pick up tips and ideas that will enhance your exerience!
Wayne's made several good points I think. Purple has always been a color that I find a little jarring to my eye when there is too much of it. That may not be the case, and probably isn't, for many others out there. You have some beautiful work, John - this just isn't one of my favorites of yours.
Posted by Randy Wilson on March 26, 2008 at 3:15 PM
I want you to know, John, that I have absolutely nothing against purple, violet, mauve, lilac, indigo, grape, heather, pansy, orchid, puce, or lavender. Or aramanthine, for that matter. Well, maybe aramanthine.
But anyhow, caveat lector always has to be applied to anything that gets said here, and you have to reconcile the critiques that are made with your own vision and aesthetic judgement. Unless it's something I'm saying, because I'm always right.
Discussion
11 repliesGood shot, thanks for sharing!
I spent a good deal of time posting to the Flora forum and getting valuable feedback on my images. I learned a ton from that input but learned even more by observing what others were doing. It's a much tougher subject matter to do well than most give it credit for.
Personally I find groupings like your shot MUCH tougher to compose well than say a portrait or true macro isolation of a bloom.
If you're into flora I would highly recommend visiting that forum often to see the stunning work being done there and also pick up tips and ideas that will enhance your exerience!
Keep up the good work!
But anyhow, caveat lector always has to be applied to anything that gets said here, and you have to reconcile the critiques that are made with your own vision and aesthetic judgement. Unless it's something I'm saying, because I'm always right.