Critique Style Requested: In-depth
The photographer has shared comprehensive information about their intent and creative vision for this image. Please examine the details and offer feedback on how they can most effectively realize their vision.
Self Critique
I love capturing portraits of wildflowers. Pasque are among my favorites because they are one of the first to bloom. Would it have looked better to pull back a bit and get more empty space around the flowers?
Creative direction
I wanted to capture a portrait style image of these little beauties. I always try to accentuate the fuzzy hairs that cover them and help protect them from frost.
Specific Feedback
I’m open to all feedback on this image.
Technical Details
Nikon D850
Sigma 105mm macro
ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/25th second
41 images stacked for focus in Helicon Focus
I’ve added sharpness and texture to the flowers and additionally softened the background
Description
Spring in the Rockies comes in ephemeral bursts. One day the sky is blue, the breeze is gentle, and the air feels delightfully soft and warm against your bare arms. Then, the following day the temperature has dropped, snow is falling, and you can feel the chill of the frigid wind right through your down coat. These little glitches where WInter seems reluctant to listen to the calendar, cannot prevent the hope that rises within my chest on the warm days from being crushed by the colder days. One thing I love to do is to wander around the woods on the outskirts of town and look for the harbingers of Spring that sprinkle the landscape. At first glance the only thing you see are the dry, brown remain of last years growing things. But then, something magic happens. The more you look, the more you see! There are mats of pink-tinged white Phlox hugging the ground. The soil holds the warmth of the Sun and transfers life back to the plant. Yellow Sagebrush Buttercups are sprinkled in amongst the taller grasses. The more exposed hillsides are covered in the hope of the purple blooms of Parry’s Townsend Daisys. I saw the bright pink of Shooting Stars. They are such joyful little points of light. Wyoming Kittentails, Larkspur, and a few Lupine just beginning to form buds. I even saw a few early Arrowleaf Balsamroot blooms!
All of these jewels of Spring are beautiful, but they were not the primary reason I was here. My favorite springtime flower is the fuzzy purple Pasque Flower. I was looking for some in a particular pose that would allow me to capture their portrait in a way that did them justice. I did find quite a few, but most were bent over from the recent snowfall and not yet opened up. I had made a big loop on the trail and was just about back to the trailhead when I spotted exactly what I was looking for. There, on a steep hillside, stood a pair of perfectly formed flowers, all covered in tiny hairs to protect it from the frost. As the Sun neared the western horizon, the Robins began to sing. It was almost as if the flowers perked up just to hear the beautiful sound. They stood perfectly still as I went to work with my camera. I walked away with a smile on my face, knowing I had found exactly what I came here for!
