The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
a friend of mine sent me this plant for hummingbirds. Native to Mexico and Central America, the plant is currently in bloom. I brought the plant from its growing area and placed it in a light tent with a black BG and used a single off camera flash for fill. Something you just do not see every day.
Technical Details
Z9 200mm f4 micro on tripod (1/10 sec at f8.0, ISO 160, fill flash at -2.0ev) 8 image stack in PMax , Topaz DeNoise AI, Bandaid tool to remove dirt on leaves, added canvas on top and sides and removed orphan leaves with rubber stamp tool. Levels with black point adjustment. Crop for comp…Jim
Nice treatment of it and it looks great with the dark bg. Do you plan to plant this outside though? It isn’t native and makes me nervous. The birds will probably like it.
Gorgeous looking plant and you did a great job of capturing it with the black BG, Jim!
I had to do a little reading on this plant just to satisfy my own curiosity and it appears that the recommended growing zones in the US are from 9-11, that’s a bit south of the Michigan area but as long as they’re planted in planters that you can bring inside during winter months or move into a green house, they should do very well.
Of course I’m sure you have already researched the best way to keep these lovely plants thriving!
This type of plant should provide you with a ton of opportunities for hummingbird and maybe hummingbird moth images.
I really like the lighting and the details with the black BG! I also like the textures in the leaves and the colors!
Thank you @Merv , @Kris_Smith , and @Diane_Miller Diane. @Diane_Miller I normally use 3 flashes for botanical subjects, but I took my light tent outside and used available natural lighting along with a single flash to control the strength of the shadows. The lighting worked well. @Kris_Smith, I planted this one in the hummingbird garden last year, but it found the site not good and almost died out. I repotted it and kept it under LED lighting for the winter and it is quite happy potted up for now. It would never survive a Michigan winter. @Merv, I hope to get some shots of our hummingbirds using this plant later on during August and September. Too few birds are around right now, so it would be an exercise in futility…Jim
