The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I found these pasque flowers a couple weeks ago in a spot where my wife and I frequently walk our dog. There were a lot of them in this area, in various stages of blooming and in a range of color from very pale to deep purple. I really liked the pastel color of this cluster, and they happened to be catching the early evening light. Interestingly, we returned to this same spot the next morning, and these flowers were gone. The stems were all severed a couple inches from the ground, I’m assuming by a deer. I think this image has some flaws, but there are some things I like about it too. I’d be interested to hear others’ thoughts and feedback. Thank you!
Technical Details
Sony a6000, 17-70 mm lens, shot at 67 mm, ISO 250, f/7.1, 1/160. In Lightroom, I increased exposure, contrast, and whites a bit, decreased highlights, and made adjustments to the point curve. I warmed the image up a little and desaturated the greens a bit. I used a mask to darken the background a little. Finally, I played around with the dehaze slider and ended up adding a little negative dehaze. It wasn’t a hazy day at all, but I liked how the negative dehaze brightened up the image.
It’s been way too long since I’ve seen this species in the wild, John, but this is a lovely look at them. Not knowing what was around them to screw up the image, it’s hard to say, but I tend to think a looser composition giving the flowers more room to breathe would appeal to me. I like your point of focus and depth of field and your post processing is very nice-it produced a soft feel that fits this species. There’s a bright stem of some kind crossing the right petal of the lowest flower that I find a bit eye grabbing. So a few minor nits, but a lovely image.
Thank you for the feedback, @Dennis_Plank . I recropped the image as you suggested. It doesn’t make a huge difference, but there’s a little more space around the flowers now. The lower left corner had the edge of another flower in it, which is why I initially used a tighter crop. I’ve removed that flower in this version, although it probably needs a little cleanup. I do like having bit more room around the flowers. Thanks again for the suggestions.
The pale beauty is a treat here with this little group. It is a tight crop, but given your background, I don’t blame you for wanting to get rid of as much of it as possible. I like your approach to the processing and working with dehaze and desaturation to achieve what looks to be an excellent balance. The bright stem could go with some cloning and if you had a mind to bring it into Photoshop, you could add a layer, gaussian blur and then blend them to get the background to be even smoother. And while you’re in there, some dodging and burning in the flowers could bring up modeling for a more 3D effect. Just ideas to play with. A pretty portrait for sure.
Hi @Kris_Smith, thank you for the feedback and suggestions! I have to admit that I’ve never used Photoshop before, but maybe this is a good opportunity to start learning how to use it. Something to think about, anyway. Thanks again for your comments.
