The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
My wife and I arrived at the Chicago Botanic Garden on Friday before OOC Botanic was to begin on Monday, to get the lay of the garden. She was enrolled, I was there to carry her gear if needed and to stay out of everyone’s way when it started. This was our first look. The ponds at the Heritage Garden are very intimate, and as usual in such places I began a slow walk around the perimeter hunting for a view. I saw these two blooms by themselves, reaching for the overcast sky, and then noticed the reflection in the pond below. With a little maneuvering, I had my shot.
Technical Details
This was photographed using a D850 with a Tamron 100-400 lens, ISO 800, f9, 1/400 at 250mm with a polarizer. I shot it square in camera, and this is a relatively minor crop. It was on a tripod, but there was a bit of wind moving the petals, which explains the shutter speed and ISO . Processed entirely in LR. I typically use a custom profile for my work, but on this shot I used Adobe Vivid as I wasn’t looking for representational colors but something with more pop.
Gorgeous image, Joe. I love the reflection and those variegated leaves are worth several images all on their own. I do find the flowers just a touch bright for the rest of the scene. They’re bright enough that I lose the subtle details that I’m sure are there.
Thank you for the comment. Yes, I can see how the flowers are a bit much. Do you think it’s the brightness of the petals, the saturation, or the hue being a little out of alignment with the rest of the scene?
Stunning scene! Good point by @Dennis_Plank. For me, they are lust a bit too bright/light which has made them less rich in color. Have you pull the Highlights slider down? That can work magic for brighter tones. You may want to limit it to just the top flowers. The reflected ones look perfect.
So more like this? I masked the flower, dropped the whites and highlights, and changed the hue to bit more magenta. It looks less jarring to me, also. Thanks for the feedback.
Yes, much better, IMHO. You can edit your original post (pencil icon in the lower right) and add it there, above the original, and add a quick caption for each – that way people (including the Editor’s Choice crew) will see the revised version in the thumbnails.
