# Douglas Phlox and old Juniper **URL:** \ **Category:** Image Critiques\ **Tags:** plant-life, intimate, weekly-challenge\ **Created:** [October 26, 2026, 6:10pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730 "2026-10-26T18:10:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Preston\_Birdwell](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/preston_birdwell/32/374_2.png) [@Preston\_Birdwell](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Preston_Birdwell)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 6:10pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730/1 "2026-10-26T18:10:52Z")
![Original - LF-152-1-cr-npn.jpg](https://images.naturephotographers.network/original/3X/0/b/0b5d394bbe6c3d5057e60187125f6df64969065b.jpeg) ### Weekly Challenge Decay and Renewal 10/25/26 - 10/31/26 **Critique Style:** Standard The photographer is looking for thoughtful feedback on the image as a whole, especially around the areas noted below. **Feedback Focus:** Artistic + Technical ### About This Image I found this lovely group of Douglas Phlox growing in a small bit of soil next to an old Western Juniper in a canyon near Sonora Pass. I had to extend the bellows on my 4x5 a bit, which meant a longer exposure time. I was afraid any small breeze would have caused the flowers and/or the grass to move, but I was lucky. ### Feedback Requested What do you think about the composition, sharpness, and color? This is cropped slightly from the original framing. ### Technical Details Chamonix 045N2 4x5 camera Fujinon 180 mm w/ 81-b filter f-32 @ 8 s Astia 100 F, ISO 100 1800 dpi scan Processed in PS ---
**Author:** ![Ted\_Forman](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/ted_forman/32/23367_2.png) [@Ted\_Forman](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Ted_Forman)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 6:32pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730/2 "2026-10-26T18:32:47Z")
This is very nice Preston. It looks to me like it is sharp throughout the frame, and the placement of the main subject is good. It might help to add a little vignetting around the edges to give the plant some more emphasis, but I wouldn’t do anything else. Good work. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Fach](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/bill_fach/32/78290_2.png) [@Bill\_Fach](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Bill_Fach)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 9:10pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730/3 "2026-10-26T21:10:55Z")
Preston; You have such a good eye for little intimate scenes like this. The wood alone looks like a target rich environment and the supporting phlox is the perfect complement. Very nicely seen and superbly captured.\>=))\> ---
**Author:** ![Dennis\_Plank](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/dennis_plank/32/27033_2.png) [@Dennis\_Plank](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Dennis_Plank)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 9:20pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730/4 "2026-10-26T21:20:42Z")
A beautiful contrast between the juniper and the phlox, Preston. I really like the composition though I’d be tempted to lose those two partial rocks in the lower right corner. Your shutter speed reminds me of an image in a book I have from one of the very early British bird photographers of an owl tucked in at the base of a tree (its nest) using the same shutter speed, so sometimes it can even work for critters. ---
**Author:** ![Marylynne\_Diggs](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/marylynne_diggs/32/87403_2.png) [@Marylynne\_Diggs](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Marylynne_Diggs)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 9:33pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730/5 "2026-10-26T21:33:45Z")
I love this, Preston. It’s got all the right elements: decaying tree, vibrant phlox, some interesting rock. I can see Dennis’ point about the rocks on the right, but I didn’t notice them. They don’t add to the image, and if it’s in your practice (and it might not be), removing them does make for a simpler intimate scene. Nicely done! ML ---
**Author:** ![Kris\_Smith](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/kris_smith/32/59826_2.png) [@Kris\_Smith](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Kris_Smith)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 10:17pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730/6 "2026-10-26T22:17:27Z")
What struck me first was the relative “solidity” difference between the weathered wood and the fresh flowers. The green agains the lovely golden hues and grays also emphasizes the difference as things age and feed the earth and the things that benefit from that long goodbye. I wish the grass wasn’t there, but what can you do? Did you try cropping slightly in from the right to eliminate those bright rocks? Cloning them out would work too, if you had a mind. Excellent textures all around. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Peters](https://assets.naturephotographers.network/user_avatar/community.naturephotographers.network/don_peters/32/87970_2.png) [@Don\_Peters](https://community.naturephotographers.network/u/Don_Peters)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 10:44pm UTC](https://community.naturephotographers.network/t/douglas-phlox-and-old-juniper/52730/7 "2026-10-26T22:44:02Z")
I really like this one, Preston. I’d get rid of the rocks in the lower right, though, or at least reduce the brightness of the brighter one.