The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
a.k.a. Yellow Poplar. A friend has one in her yard and a few days ago she said I should come over. This bloom was within reach with a fairly long lens. Not the most stunning pose, but I do like these rather stealthy and short-lived blossoms.
Specific Feedback
All comments welcome!
Technical Details
Minimal tweaks in LR, some dodging and burning and cloning in PS.
Critique Template
Use of the template is optional, but it can help spark ideas.
It must have been quite high up, Diane - but that helped as you then could easily show the cool colors on the outside of the petals. I especially like the dark corona of the BG - as well as the square crop. Tulip trees are great - as long as you don’t plant them near a hard surface, as the roots will run amok. I speak from experience! Wouldn’t change a thing with this shot.
Diane: I am SOOOO jealous of your opportunity. We had one of these trees in our garden and it never bloomed and eventually died. One of Chrissy’s very rare poor results despite some significant effort going into it. Besides the subject I very much like your capture. Good decisions all around and a fine result. >=))>
Oooh this is so creamy and lickable!! Yeah, I had to go there. Totally lickable light. Like a refreshing sorbet between courses. The varying shades of green are quite striking as is the flower itself. Not sure I’ve ever seen one of these trees; they remind me of dogwoods. The only thing I might have a go with is removing the twig itself and leaving a see of floating greens and pastels. Superb!
Thanks, @Mike_Friel, @Dennis_Plank, @Bill_Fach, @Kris_Smith and @Sandy_Richards-Brown! Kris, lickable light – I love that characterization! Definitely sorbet – how about tangerine and lime? I thought I might be able to go a step more toward lickable. I pruned the stem and gave it a try – posted above. What do you think? (And I just put sorbet on the grocery list – but it will warrant a side trip to the local high-end ice cream store.)
These trees don’t bloom for long and I’ve missed the chance to hunt for more. Next Year!
No suggestions for adjustment. Perfect 1:1 format. Beautifully presented with the dark background. We have a 30 year old tree in our garden (in the middle of the UK) - this year it has thousands of flowers, way way more than any previous year. Only 2 or 3 are accessible, all others being way too high and at the ends of long thin branches.
Thanks, @VirtuallyGrey and @Kris_Smith! This tree is also way too big with only two blooms I could even frame. And I was too lazy to check out a few other smaller trees I know about. Next year!
Diane, these are a major forest species in the mid-Atlantic. Their blooms are nicely subtle but very hard to photograph, since they tend to be way up high. You’ve done very well getting this clean view. The extra contrast in the repost lets the bloom pop, as it makes the view more of a portrait and gives less context.
Thanks, @Mark_Seaver and @Tom_Nevesely! Next May I’m going to take the pole pruner over there. If I remove the saw blade maybe I can reach a bloom without damaging it and use the pruning blade to snag it for some studio work. This method let me get a shot I really like years ago, in the days of medium-format film.
