A large pointed bud low down on our neighbour’s Magnolia obovata popped open after light rain yesterday, and I found it like this at 4 pm. There was sun, but also wind, so the first picture is pretty soft.
This morning I took the second picture below. It was cloudy, but at 9.20 am the wind was just stirring, causing some blurring of leaf edges.
What interests me though is the change overnight. Large magnolia blooms like these have been studied in detail by scientists investigating reproduction, and I’m sure some people on this website know well what’s going on. As for me, I just enjoyed the scent and marveled at the changes in the amazing design. I’d love to do a time lapse video of this bloom one day, but for this year they have now all opened.
Specific Feedback Requested
Both images were stacked from 9 shots each. The first is a PMax, the second a DMap, both in Zerene Stacker (for a first-class 18-shot stack of this flower, see Diane Miller’s of a few days ago). I’m trying to get to grips with stacking, but wind and the tiny turning of the lens dial are my bugbears at the moment. Please ignore the more obvious artifacts. Any other points are most welcome.
Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
Image 1: D500 +105mm macro, f9 1/800 ISO 1000 + tripod
Having never lived where magnolia grow, this is fascinating to see. Are there specific pollinators for these or just bees and other bugs in general?
The light in both is really lovely. Lickable as I say. Smooth and creamy with soft shadows. The slight backlighting in the first one adds depth in a really pleasing way. In the first I’d try burning in the bright section of bg in the lower left, but other than that it’s a really terrific set.
I would be happy with either in my portfolio. The first has a cleaner background, the second a more interesting center. The bright spots in the background of the second image can easily be eliminated.
@Kris_Smith “They are generally pollinated
by beetles, rather than honeybees or bumblebees, which tend to seek
nectar-rich flowers. While engorging themselves on the pollen grains,
the beetles inadvertently disperse pollen from one flower to another.”
Possibly this happens at night, as I didn’t observe any beetles,
and/or maybe I missed the male stage. This plant does not have nectar,
so no bees, but the scent must surely attract the beetles, and anyone
waiting by the adjacent bus-stop! (3 years later - probably bees do come, for the pollen, as shown in my post of 5/26/24, though this is on a different Magnolia species)
Two gorgeous images, and a very interesting “time lapse” of the flower’s development. I missed day 1 on mine. I’m not inclined to spoil the magic by looking for artifacts so I see none! A little BG touchup would make even stronger images, but certainly not necessary. Next year let’s make a pact to see what more we can do with these magnificent things!
I often stack a DMap and a PMax to mask some of the artifacts.
I like both images. Both are beautiful, very well done. I like the first one better because of the darker leaves bring out the flower well. Beautiful buttery soft textures on the petals show well. The carpels and stamens are sharp and well contrasted against the creamy tepals. Great work! Agree with Patricia on removing the bright spots on both.
Thanks for your comments. I’ve excised the bright bits and reposts have replaced the original shots. @Diane_Miller: you’re on for next year! Thanks for the tip about stacking DMap and PMax.
I couldn’t resist playing with these a bit, as the contrast feels too flat. When I opened them I see there is no embedded profile (PS should be set to warn of that, in the Color Settings menu). That will cause some browsers to show the colors incorrectly, using the monitor profile instead of sRGB. I assume you had converted to sRGB, but if not, that could account for some of the flat appearance, as I don’t remember the originals struck me as a bit flat.
Anyway, here are a few tweaks, with sRGB embedded. I used a Curves to brighten the whites on both.
On the first I used a touch of Nik Detail Extractor to add a little tonal detail and lighten the leaves a bit, and warmed the whites slightly to come closer to the second image. (The tree I know has a cream tint to the flowers.) And I blurred the OOF detail in the UR.
On the second I increased green saturation a bit.
Starting over with the raw files would be much better, but its a way to illustrate a few ideas.
@Diane_Miller Thanks very much for these improvements to my shots. As you rightly said, I had not (ever) checked the box for Embed Color Profile in the “Save for Web” settings. I have now saved this for future photo loading! (I had, however, converted to sRGB).
Your tweaks really bring out the character of this great flower; I can use them next time, with a lot of practice in between. The blurring, use of Curves and Detail Extractor, and increasing the greens all enhance the images for sure. The only alteration I might tone down a bit is your warming of the whites in the first picture. As I recall, there was very little hint of cream there, but overnight after the stamens opened the cream appeared, and darkened as the bloom aged. But that’s nit-picking.
I’m sure not just me but others learn a lot from comments like these, and this makes being on NPN such a rewarding experience - photography at its best.
Mike: Wonderful subject and a fine story regarding the blooming cycle of these beauties. I have no strong preference and do think your tweaks enhance things nicely. Well done. >=))>
