The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
I went back Saturday in hopes of getting the magnolia flower but it was a disappointment – only half opened but already a mess. But the chewed up leaf was still the same. It is almost on the ground and in a tangle of large dry leaves and small branches that frustrate planting a tripod firmly. I wish I could have gotten a very slightly different placement, about an inch lower and to the left, to make the upcurled piece stand out better.
Specific Feedback
All comments welcome!
Technical Details
A focus stack. Nothing heroic either in LR or PS. Denoise and some subtle BG simplification.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
Interesting subject, Diane. The upcurled piece of the leaf on your second post caught my attention immediately. The curves are very graceful and the detail of the underside is wonderful. Don’t you just love exploring nature. . . whether up close or in galaxies far far away. Nicely done.
I like this a lot, Diane. It took awhile for all the detail to come through, but after it did, it was wonderful. I do have one minor nit: That little brown protrusion next to the mid-rib that got chopped off would really be nice to see entire. Judging by the whole leaf image you could just shift the frame a touch to get it.
Diane, You have a really great eye to have visulaized this image. I’m afraid I would have passed on by. Thanks for the lesson I’ll take to heart.
Very interesting subject- perfect comp, contrast in colours, and detail.
Thanks, @linda_mellor, @Dennis_Plank and @SandyR-B! Dennis, when I get a minute I’ll do a RP including that bit – I debated about it and thought about cloning out the protrusion on the composition I posted. Sandy, you would have seen it, too, while standing around hoping the flower would finally decide to open. Apparently they normally open before the garden does, but this time they were stymied by the clouds or fog I fervently hope for (and which are so rare here).
Diane, I am really impressed with this image. I like it a lot. That hole with the oof same colors really is nice. Very creative. I too might have passed this by, so when I ever get out to look for interesting macro shots I will try to remember to look at old partly dead leaves. Usually I am looking for insects.
Thanks, @Shirley_Freeman – I tend to overlook bugs. Maybe we can both meet in the middle!
@linda_mellor, @Dennis_Plank and @SandyR-B – I’ve posted two different crops above, with more of the small spot and the area leading to it cloned out. I think I prefer it with the area cloned out, in the order now posted, but I’m really undecided.
I think I agree, Diane. The version with the spot made the hole less the subject of the image and that relaively sharp projection tends to lead my eye out of the frame.
I also agree with you on the crop. Yes, we might could meet in the middle. I love learning from others. Always good to have someone you can go shoot with occasionally. It broadens our view of things around us.
By golly @Bill_Fach – you’re right!! I wonder if that’s what made me notice it in the first place? Pattern recognition is such a strong almost-subconscious feature of intelligence, going back way before humans.
Our older daughter was fascinated with airplanes and when she was about 10 months old she saw a very stylized airplane shape in an ad in one of Ted’s magazines – just a single-line squiggle – and pointed to it with delight and said ah-ppie!! (Her second word, after dada. Didn’t yet need a word for mama, who was always just a complaint away.)
