Fringe position (+1 re-edit)

Image Critiques Weekly Challenge
1

Fringe position
Fringe position2250×3000 2.13 MB

2nd try - used the Background mask in Lr and subtracted green, reduced exposure 1/2 a stop and then pulled the effect of the mask back to 76%. I think it’s an improvement!

Kristen_SmithOctober 07, 2022P1109799-Edit
Kristen_SmithOctober 07, 2022P1109799-Edit1500×2000 1010 KB

Ferns and rocks have long been a fascination of mine; how they can find and exploit the smallest niche to survive. This one is on a huge slab of rock on the side of the Pine River at Breakwater Falls in Wisconsin. It’s about 3 1/2 feet off the ground (1 m) and what fascinated me even more when I got a close look is that all the fronds are spore producers. In most ferns spore production is limited to just a few fronds or is done on specific parts of the plant that only serve for spore production, like with Cinnamon ferns. Those cinnamon sticks are where the spores are. That every frond here is frantically trying to reproduce, it made me wonder that the precarious position of the fern, that is the relatively dark (shaded) and nutrient-poor environment pushed it into overdrive so to speak. This stuff just knocks me out and is a big driving factor in my photography - finding out about cool stuff.

BTW, I really like the new Weekly Challenge submission form!

Specific Feedback and Self-Critique

So that background. It’s obviously another big boulder and it’s a couple of feet behind. I did my best to reduce its intrusion and went so far as to remove bits on it that were really distracting. But I think it works well as an illustration of the environment this fern has grown in. What say you?

I framed this one up carefully to include the layers of rock on the right and to get the live and dead leaves in focus and at the top of the frame. Does this work for you?

Technical Details

Tripod and maybe a CPL, but I can’t remember

image

Lr for a bit of a crop, wb adjustment and the usual curves to improve contrast. Added texture and sharpening. Ps for distraction removal in the bg.

1 Like
2

Cute little guys. And thanks for the fern biology lesson - I didn’t know about spore production.

I do find the background distracting. Maybe darkening it?

3

This is a great example how something so small can survive in a rough place. Showing the dead leaf under the new green one adds to the story nicely. I do notice that the background rock wall is a little brighter where the leaves are. That said the contrast between the foreground and background is good showing depth in the scene.

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Thanks @Bonnie_Lampley & @Dean_Salman - glad you didn’t mind my waxing on about ferns. I just love Earth’s older plants - the pre-flowering ones like moss, ferns and liverworts.

Good advice about dropping the bg exposure. Put a new shot up in the OP and I think it works.

5

That looks great, Kris

6

Kris, Great image. My first thought, to lose the BG effect was a tighter crop, but then you lose the environment effect. Plus the boulder edges on the right give it a 3 dimensional feel, that I keep coming back to. The spider web is also a nice touch. Love the story.

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Excellent, Kris. I really like the way the fern pops from the environment and the slightly bedraggled look of it which to me communicates the struggle it has to survive in a location like this.

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Thanks @Dean_Salman, @marlindmills & @Dennis_Plank - glad that you’re getting the precariousness of the fern’s placement. I hadn’t really considered the framing to have a 3D effect, but now you mention it, I see it does somewhat.