This is from May, 2022. I was taking my treasured Zeiss Batis 40mm CF for a walk on on the Applegate Ridge Trail near Jacksonville, OR. I returned with a small album of wildflower close ups. Often I repeat walks, different days, with different lenses, seeking different subjects. When I may wish to combine landscapes and general photography with close ups on the same walk, this close focusing 40mm with it’s flat plane of focus is more useful than my 90mm macro and is lighter to carry than my zooms.
Type of Critique Requested
Aesthetic: Feedback on the overall visual appeal of the image, including its color, lighting, cropping, and composition.
Conceptual: Feedback on the message and story conveyed by the image.
Emotional: Feedback on the emotional impact and artistic value of the image.
Technical: Feedback on the technical aspects of the image, such as exposure, color, focus and reproduction of colors and details, post-processing, and print quality.
Specific Feedback and Self-Critique
I am relatively pleased with this composition. I got the focus and illumination I desired. However I wish now that I’d left more room above the tallest flower. Returning to the import, I made this mistake in capture, not in later cropping. Thoughts?
Technical Details
Sony ILCE-7M4, Zeiss Batis 40mm CF, KuangRen dual macro flash; f/8 1/160" ISO 100; LrC & Topaz Sharpen AI.
Capturing wildflowers I often use the dual macro flash. Only with strobes can I use low ISO, small apertures, and freeze wind motion. Most often I use f/16 for DOF. Wind motion precludes focus stacking. In this case I found f/8 satisfactory for the subject blossom while creating bokeh for the other blossom and the more distant buds, and thus a sense of depth. When I wish for a more visible background (not here) I use slower shutters and higher ISOs. Flowers are shiny and reflective with tiny bright speckles. Must be careful not to overexpose in capture. Generally I find myself setting the dual macro flash to 1/16 or 1/32 power, particularly with white flowers, and I do a lot of chimping.
To better balance the composition I cropped in so that the distance from the subject blossom to the lower edge more closely matches that at the the top edge. This sacrifices the stem which contributed to the original one.
This is a gorgeous shot, and I wonder whether you might just clone in more black BG along the top and keep the stem length of the original. You could even add a bit to the right edge in the same way if you want the original balance. I really like how the bokeh flower and buds support your star bloom.
I like the sharpness and overall comp, especially in the original version. I think that if you selectively darkened the background buds slightly , then the image may appear to be more dramatic. Otherwise, a beautiful shot…Jim
I was quite struck by this because I do something similar, especially on out-and-back hikes. I use one lens coming in and another one going out. This way I don’t end up with basically the same photo for the whole walk.
Mike and Jim’s advice will improve this already terrific photo. I get caught out with framing, too, and really have to watch my placement. Chimping all the way!
Richard: Your final iteration hits the spot with me although I like all three. I also appreciate your description of your lens and flash set up. A wonderful find and a terrific capture. >=))>
PS: I edited your title to alert folks that you have reworks. You can do this yourself and it’s a good idea to let folks know you’ve made changes and can come back and revisit.
Thanks Bill. I like the improvements in the website, the merging of critique and showcase, the lack of need to subcategorize flora, and the faster login.
Before the KuangRen I had a Bolt dual macro flash. I had 2 of them, each dying suddenly. Would have been wiser to spend more initially for the KuangRen, which is also more capable.
Gorgeous composition and lighting – the enlarged version really show this off! I love the DOF. I like the repost, with more room around, but the black canvas added is a bit darker than the original BG.
To really see the mismatch, put a temporary levels or curves layer on top and brighten things up. I do that to let me see while I clone the imperfections out on the layer underneath.
Richard, as a newcomer to macro flower photography, I appreciate your detailed explanation of setting and equipment used to capture this wonderful photo. I did notice the background mismatch mentioned by @Diane_Miller but I do like the adjustment to the top to create more breathing room. This is a wonderful capture and I will be trying out your techniques next time I’m in the field.
Using the color picker to choose a color for the added canvas would be good if the dark BG was uniform, but it rarely is. Here’s the look with a temporary Curves layer on top. It could be a place to start but I’d use some ~50% opacity cloning to smooth out the transition.
And I second the shout-out for Picture This – it is amazing., even with an iPhone picture of an online forum post.
