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
Mostly trying to illustrate the tendency for Wild Columbine to find a niche wherever it can do so. I’m very interested to find out how this photo might have been done differently to accentuate the growth among the rocks.
Creative direction
Hopefully the presence of the soft beauty of the flowers among the rocks will show the perserverance of living things in hard places.
Specific Feedback
Emotional and aesthetic responses are important.
Technical Details
Canon R5 Mark II, RF 100-500 @ 223mm, ISO 1600, f/8 @ 1/1000. Handheld. Processed in Dx0 PL8 and Photoshop CC.
Description
One of our favorite spots. The Columbine flowers are at peak right now. We enjoy the area of the Snowy Range in Wyoming and try to get there at least once per summer season.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Fred: This is very nicely done and achieves your purpose exceptionally well. Desaturating the surroundings and the vignette really bring attention to the columbines. Very nicely conceived and superbly presented. Most excellent.>=))>
What a great find. One of the hardest flowers to photograph, so great job persisting. I remember trying to shoot red columbine on a huge boulder growing about 6 feet off the ground. That was hard. While I do like the composition and the flowers themselves, my first response was to your processing, not the subject itself. For me hard vignettes and obvious desaturation just makes me think of the edit much more than the photo itself. It may work with a tighter crop if you want to kept the same general appearance.
Yes, the Columbines are everywhere in this location. I appreciate your feelings about this particular treatment. I’ll experiment with a crop and see if it could work.
Very nice, Fred. I like the way you included the environment, though I could see a little less of it, especially since you essentially erased a good deal of it with the vignette, You could probably play with different crops of this forever.
I think you achieved your objective well. My personal preference would also be for a tighter crop. Of course, there are endless crop options.
I enjoyed a quick daytrip to the Snowy Range at the end of June. Beautiful, but still far too much snow for any hiking.
I’m curious. Most of the Snowy Range is characterized by white quartzite. Were your rocks originally bright white? If so, darkening them was an excellent choice to highlight the Columbine.
Fred, this is an interesting presentation that works well, with the desaturated surroundings. My thought on adding more focus to the Columbine is to crop, maybe to a square on the right that would emphaisze the sharpness of the rocks against the softness and color of the flowers.
I’m jumping on the bandwagon. This is a seriously wonderful image. The commenters are probably right that you could play with it in many ways. That could be fun because you’re starting with such a fine photograph.
Thank you. The snow has receded now. The boulders were a bit darker since they are right at the soil line and a bit dusty. It was also cloudy at the time.
I like this, Fred. The blossoms off to the left in the original took a little away from the stars of the show. The lighting in this version is excellent and the dark boundaries look far more natural that the conventional oval vignette that was probably developed to go around a more or less oval human face.
I am late to catch the train here, but thought I’d chime in.
The flowers are gorgeous and the way you processed this image makes them the star of the show. I do prefer the 4x5 crop.
There are some nice lichens on the boulders, so I am wondering if bringing back some of their color would add another dimension without undue distraction from the flowers.
