The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
On my walk the other day in the park. I saw this guy land and I took a couple shots. He stayed there long enough to grab a couple images. I can’t compete with Bill or Shirley or others but I decided to at least contribute an Image … I am real new to photographing flying insects. That is a whole new world for me. Flying by the seat of my Pants …Challenging and Fun !!!
Specific Feedback
A little sharper , less noise , better angle, better edit… But i gave it the old college try. This style photography is a real challenge and I hope to do better and be a part of the Flying Insect Community here on the NPN. Always learning !!!
Technical Details
ISO 640 SS 500 f11 edit in photoshop
Critique Template
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Gil: You have some good raw material here with the butterfly and the perch. A lot of the other stuff in the frame causes some significant distractions, especially the bright OOF flower on the top edge. The contrast on swallowtails like this is a real challenge. The whites are blown on the butterfly body and overall the highlights are a bit strong. I did some cropping and cleanup with generative fill to give you a quick and dirty idea of the possibilities. Keep after it. >=))>
Gill, thank you for your vote of confidence in me. I haven’t had much time to take photos this year. I really need to take the time and go to the Botanical Gardens or somewhere that would have a few BF’s or something to aim my lens at. You captured the sharpness in this beauty, but because he was so close to the leaves and branches behind him, at f11 everything wound up sharp. Maybe you will get one to pose with the BG far enough away to just have the BG and his perch in focus and everything else a nice smooth blur. I’m glad you are able to get out and try. Keep shooting.
Thanks. Using my macro lens. I used f11 to keep as much of the butterfly in focus as I could. I got as close as possible. He did not sit long. So grab what I could. A real challenge for sure. You and Bill and Sandy and others have done amazing images of the insect world. Hope you can find time to photograph again. I’ll be 74 and things are changing. To take an image I’m happy with and write guitar music for it. That’s the goal.
Thanks again. Bill did a new edit and improved it.
Butterflies are a big challenge because they are usually so close to a busy BG. Finding them in the shade (or shading them – and the BG – with your body) helps a little with the distractions of high contrast. But they rarely sit still so the latter is not very practical.
In a case like this, if you’re using PS, Select > Subject and then Select > Inverse might be a great way to calm down the BG. I had to try it. With that selection in place I did a simple Curves adjustment layer and got this. Just an idea…
Thanks. I’ll learn and try this out. Working on my photo/ journal and editing as I go. For fun. Insects in general are a pain to photograph. So a real challenge. It made a nice project and challenge. You and others have done some great images. Always learning and trying to keep up.
Hi Diane. Thanks for your editing technigues. I never used this technique so I gave it the old college try. I think this is an improvement but not sure compared to the other edits.. I did crop some more and cloned out some parts i thought hurt this image. All and all …I do feel its better. … Any suggestions. Thanks to EVERYONE for helping me with my photography. The members on the NPN are so gracious with their time and ideas. I really appreciate it so much. Its a new journey for me. I guess we are all learning as we go. Thanks again to ALL that help me be a better photographer… Peace to Our Planet !!!
