Critique Style Requested: Standard
The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
I don’t really like this type of view for dragonflies, but with the subtle colors of the perch and BG, I think that this one turned out OK.
z9 200mm f4 micro (1/200 sec at f18, ISO 500, fill at -2.0ev) slight crop, Topaz DeNoise AI, Levels, Shadows & Highlights, Curve adjustment for contrast…Jim
Oooohh! I like the view – super detail in the focal plane and a very interesting perch! I love Dragonflies when they hang like this. Nice to see that your Widow Skimmers look like ours – at least to my untutored eye. Aesthetic and technical are both over the top for me! I love the BG, too. One very minor thought would be to remove the bright area along the bottom border toward the right, but that’s a pretty trivial observation.
Jim, this is a fine look at this DF. The details in the wings and throughout the DF are really nice. I like the composition, with the DF almost filling the frame, and hanging on the tiny flower. The BG works for me. Well done.
Hi Jim, I like this view of the dragonfly. Nice details throughout. I rarely see a dragonfly perching on any kind of flower - even a thin stalk like this - cool to see. Well done.
Jim, the from the top view shows of the wing details very well. You’ve got tip-to-tip sharpness, which is always a challenge. The arching perch looks and how quickly it blends into the background look very good. Overall, it’s a beauty.
It might not be a head on shot but this really shows off the beautiful wings and grace of the dragonfly. I love how it’s bending the flower. It adds to the delicateness of it all. Really nice capture.
Ah – wait a minute – I said yours looked like ours, but something was nagging at the back of my mind and I was in too much of a hurry to check. Now I’ve looked back at the ones I have keyworded (quite a few different individuals over several years) and all of mine have the darker color on the front wings as well. Interesting – are the ones in the Midwest that different or is this an outlier? Just curious.
Hi Diane,
This is a transitioning male and the forewing black bands have not formed yet. As they get older, body colors become more subdued…Jim
Thanks, Jim – good to know – I never get details like this when I try to ID things online. Same with birds – it’s hard enough to find M vs F differences.
