The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I was at the botanical gardens in Tucson and wanted to get pretty close to the bees today. I always look to see if she has some pollen and focusing on her head. Waiting for her to position and prevent strong sunlight is always a challenge.
Specific Feedback
I did a square crop here. Was thinking a 4x5 but was picking up more of the flowers. Any thoughts on cropping
Nice, Dean. You managed the light well. I think the square crop works. I do find that dark place on the right side a tiny bit of a distraction even though I know it is a break between two petals, but I wonder if either cloning or providing more of that area would make it less of a distraction? Just a thought. I think because it is such a tiny area and running off the edge of the image it just catches my eye. It might just be me, once I notice something, then it is there for me to see. If it was mine I also might try bringing up the shadows on the eye closes that is on the lower side to see if it would help as well. You really got a nice closeup view of this bee with lots of details and managed the light well. I know that places like the Botanical Gardens aren’t open during the sweet light, so you have to work with what you have, which is usually harsh light. Well done.
Thanks for the feedback, @Shirley_Freeman. I looked again and agree would be nice if the dark green was not so outstanding. Seem to make sense to replace it with a flower part. I also increased the shadow on the eyes just a bit. Then did a small contrast curve on the abdomen.
Dean, I like it! I think your update is much improved. It was a nice image to begin with, but I really like what you did. You might could smooth the petal above the bee where you replaced it, I’m seeing where the cloning comes together with the original petal. I know I am not good at those kind of repairs. I need to get more efficient with my editing. Still, just as it is, if one didn’t know what you did and was looking to the repair, probably wouldn’t even notice.
Nice job of editing the flower petals, the rework looks really good to me.
@Shirley_Freeman did a good job of providing a detailed critique and she’s right about the changes not being noticeable to the viewer if they didn’t know about the edits, it looks natural.
Nice work on handling the exposure too!
I like it, it’s very pleasing to the eyes and the details are certainly good enough to hold the viewers attention.
