I have been thoroughly enjoying myself around our Wisteria bush the last couple of days. So glad to see our bees out. It is very windy and overcast, so a bit difficult to get any good shots today, so I was right pleased with this one. I just love the position this one got in, with the bloom seeming to cradle him in.
Specific Feedback Requested
Anything you can see to improve the shot.
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
I shot this with my Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 100 mm L macro lens, HH, at manual mode, f6.3, 1/2500, ISO (auto) at 1600. Edited in LR and Topaz AI Clear, with a crop leaving about 70% of original file.
Oh this bee looks fairly overwhelmed by choice! So sharp - well done! What a wonderful thing to have in your yard - the hours of photography. I brought this into Camera raw because it looked like it could use an exposure boost and some adjustment of the white and black points. I also pulled up the mid tones in a curve adjustment. So I did that and a little crop because the green patch was a little distracting because I keep thinking it’s a katydid or a mantis. Please say it is and that you got photos! Anyway, I hope you don’t mind. This was too much for me to resist.
Thank you, Kris. I think the exposure does look better. It is amazing how one can look at something and convince themselves it is okay. That is the good thing about NPN critiques. More eyes to view and suggest. That wasn’t a katydid or a mantis, it was a new limb holding these flowers. I am afraid I have got about all I will get this season, as we are do to get storms in about an hour, then turn much cooler, so the bees have already left the scene, plus it is quite windy, so difficult to capture a shot. It was fun while it lasted. My husband and I got permission to dig this up (when it was a tiny busy) from the wild, and we planted it inside a 5 gallon plastic bucket (with nail holes in the bottom to drain water), so it would contain the wisteria from spreading, as they do like to do. Thanks again. I think it is an improvement.
Shirley, I like the overall, gentle purple with the bee and that touch of green branch for change-of-pace. The extra contrast that Kris added certainly makes the image pop and removing the green adds focus onto the bee. (I also expect that with the added contrast and brightness that green branch would be blow out, although that could be handled with some burning-in.) The processing choices are about what story (what feelings) your trying to create with the photo.
