The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
My very shady woodland pond area has quite a number of these invasive Asiatic Dayflowers blooming. They open fairly early in the morning and fade by mid-afternoon. They also are very hard to find without significant flaws. I did manage to find this one catching a morning sunbeam.
Specific Feedback
While these don’t grab your eyes, when you get up close, they are quite elegant. This is a nearly life size look as the flowers are only about 1.5 cm long. I didn’t notice the elegance of the stamen and pistil until I processed the shot.
Technical Details
R5, 180 mm macro, 1/30 s, f/8, iso 800, tripod. A 60 shot stack, cropped to 4x5 removing dead space on the right.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Vision and Purpose:
Conceptual:
Emotional Impact and Mood:
Composition:
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Technical:
Mark: This is exceptionally fine. Great work on a tiny subject. My only point of potential misgiving is the clipped leaves but I think you clipped off enough to be effective without demanding more room to see the entire leaves. The proportion of flower to frame suits me perfectly. Superbly crafted image.>=))> -.
A beautiful composition, Mark. I love the flow created by the different elements of ht e flower and leaves and the black background works quite well for the vibrant colors. Probably because I use the dark view, I think a thin border to separate the image from the page background would be nice.
I haven’t seen one of these for ages and have never photographed them at all, never mind this exceptionally. I love your angle and the way the light catches in the little pod (?) the flower emerged from. It’s got a sense of motion with those curling, extended stamens (?). Very elegant and delicate. The black background sets it off in a dramatic way that suits its perfection. The deliberate leaf amputation is something I mulled over. Not sure that you wanted me thinking about it, but I did and neither like nor dislike your choice. It suits the portrait, but does make me consider it. A fresh and exciting shot even if it is a flower that doesn’t belong here.
I normally look closely at an image before I read the information with the photograph, and interestingly I had this same thought. One of the beauties of Flora is you can get eye-candy detail that many normally miss while wandering amongst flowers. This is a great example of that, quite a beauty that gives me an impression of an elegant bird with exotic tail feathers about to take flight.
I didn’t pay attention to the cut off leaves until reading others’ mentions, so I gues I’m fine with it.
John, it’s impossible to get only this flower, it’s too small and the way it pops out of the leaf “envelope” mean that there must be some green to contrast with the blue and yellow. I have other views where there was less light on the leaves, but like the brightness and the contrast between the green and blue here.
What a cool flower! I’ve never seen anything like it and you made a lovely capture. If only one leaf tip was cut off it might look odd, but having both cut of makes it intentional and the horizontal composition suits the flower so well.
I could wonder about a gradient burn from the left but not a big deal.
Mark, you beat me to it! I say that tongue in cheek because I’ve been seeing these flowers for the last umpteen years and never got down to doing something as detailed and skillful as this. I’ve always loved the contrast of the blue with the green and the way the flowers sit low among the foliage. In Korea it grows wild everywhere - sorry it’s invaded at your end! I second Dennis’s suggestion for the narrow white border, but borders are personal taste. You’ve done this plant proud.
