Lewisia

Image Critiques Weekly Challenge
1

We have a little strip behind the back porch where my wife grows here Rock Daphne, which wants very well drained soil and minimal nutrients. they’re basically growing in sand and gravel. I planted a few different varieties of Lewisia there about three years ago and this one really bloomed profusely this year. To get the angle I wanted on this one, I was lying on the ground with the camera braced on one hand (no tripod to get lower). This is a three image stack to get the flowers and buds in focus but leave the rest soft. I’ll post another image taken from a tripod with the legs collapsed and partially spread so you can see the difference.

What technical feedback would you like if any?

Anything.

What artistic feedback would you like if any?

Framing was difficult under these conditions, so I’m not sure about whether I really nailed it or not.

Pertinent technical details or techniques:

5DIII, 100mm f/2.8 macro @ f/8, 1/250, iso 400, manual exposure. Three image stack in Helicon Focus. Otherwise processed in LR & PS CC. Cropped to 5618x3534… Taken April 24th at about 5 pm. I removed some extra plant growth from the rear by cloning.

2020-04-25 10-27-01 (B,Radius8,Smoothing4)-Edit-2
2020-04-25 10-27-01 (B,Radius8,Smoothing4)-Edit-21600×1006 816 KB

Same flowers taken from a higher vantage:

2020-04-24 16-24-35 (B,Radius8,Smoothing4)-Edit
2020-04-24 16-24-35 (B,Radius8,Smoothing4)-Edit1600×1089 1.34 MB

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2 Likes
2

Dennis, the low view does a great job of emphasizing the flowers. The comp. looks good, with a nice balance between the flowers, the slightly soft, green leaves and the gravel.

3

Wow Dennis, I love the detail and the beautiful colors. I think the “on the ground” image is best because, like @Mark_Seaver said, it definitely emphasizes the flowers best. Nicely seen and executed.

4

Excellent color, form, contrasting tonal values, and comp.

5

Beautiful images David, colors seem very natural with soft lighting. I enjoyed seeing the pebbles in the foreground on the low shot, displaying the plant’s natural habitat. I like the overhead shot because it shows the whole plant, giving a better view of its size and foliage.