The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
In golf occasionally you get a ball strike so pure that you barely feel the impact on the club. Our pin cushion cactus started to bloom for the first time a couple months ago but had been dormant for many weeks until this bloom popped out a couple days ago. This was probably the most perfect flower it produced. I was pressed for time so didn’t have the chance to do a stack but I think this single capture came out pretty well. The sad thing is that the flower only lasts a few hours before it fades and by the next day it is completely wilted and done .
Specific Feedback
Too much detail in the BG? Worth the effort to isolate the subject and blur the BG some more?
Technical Details
Sony A7rIII
Sony FE 70-200 f2.8 GM-II @ 154 mm
ISO 400, 1/30 @ f11
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Absolutely perfect!
Spectacular image - not the tiniest thing to suggest
Sadly, not many cactus are happy in Oregon weather, although I try valiantly to keep them alive.
Drop dead gorgeous!!! I could easily think it was a stack. How can cactus have such delicate flowers? The BG looks gorgeous, and I am speaking as a charter member of the BG police.
An idea, though – since the flower looks so easy to isolate, you might give a try at doing so and adding a bit more, ummm, something… Not contrast, but maybe Nik Detail Extractor, or something. Or maybe Nik Glamour Glow on the whole thing? Just to give the flower a bit more boldness? That would be one of those 10/10 to 11/10 things.
The energy to produce such a beauty must be great so it is extra sad that it lasts such a short time. Great job getting out there to document it though - totally worth the time to preserve it in the only way we can. The petals have a crepe paper texture that’s intriguing. You could take the bg down more, but I think it adds to the character and the story as is.
A beauty for sure. And a wall hanger-something to look at frequently and never tire of the view. Would a stack have improved this? Hard to believe. Background works for me.
Absolutely gorgeous, Bill. Your depth of field was perfect for the flower and the background isn’t too distracting. I don’t think it needs blurring, but I think the brighter greens could come down a bit. The new color picker in LR can do some wonderful things to subdue bright colors and not look too manipulated.
Oh Bill, as @Diane_Miller said, this is “drop dead gorgeous”! I like @Dennis_Plank suggestion. I haven’t tried that feature in LR yet, so now that my new monitor has arrived, I will try to get into editing my photos I took while up in Virginia. A wall hanger for sure, especially since the bloom doesn’t last long in real life.
Magnificent. As appropriately already noted: “Drop dead gorgeous!!!” What makes this so special for me is that small interior bloom. Love the reference to Kenney Lee Puckett and his creator, Dan Jenkins.
Beautiful Bill. Cactus flowers are incredible. I love the soft colors and textures in the petals. The incredible detail in the pistils and stamen. The spiny ruffly pincushions provide a nice bed for this splendid flower.
Perfect for sure Bill, the flower and the photo. It’s always an emotion to take this beautiful flower thinking that it will die soon. A short visit Bill.
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