Dainty Sulphur

[Ken Childs]

Canon EOS REBEL T1i
Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS @ 400mm.
Manual mode
1/500"
F13
ISO 400
Canon 430EX: On, Fired
HH
ACR & CS5


It was an great year for these tiny butterflies throughout much of the eastern U.S. Normally a fall species in my area, the first ones showed up in April. It can be a tough species to photograph, mainly because they stick close to the ground so anything in the BG is close to the subject. This one was in the middle of a bush but fortunately there was some distance between the 'fly and the plants behind it.

Exposure in ACR, cropped, high-pass and smart sharpening, NR on the BG. I tried removing the white area behind the 'fly but didn't like the results I was getting so I just toned it down a bit.


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[Marina Scarr]

This is such a pretty butterfly and you've captured it beautifully. It's so dainty and I love all of the little details, esp around the face and the edges of its wings. You chose a nice comp as well.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Beautiful shot Ken, well focused and the flower is perfectly exposed. I do not think the butterfly is overexposed but I think I would be tempted to lower the brightest highlights a little bit. I suspect I am saying this becasue there is a big contrast between the butterfly and the background.

[Jeannean Ryman]

Very nice shot Ken. These are such tiny little things and your DOF and comp is very nice. I agree with Jonathan about toning down the highlights a bit. Also, you might try a selective color layer to blend in that white spot behind the butterfly. Overall, a nice photo.

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Ken. You nailed this one! A beautiful subject giving you a great pose, excellent overall sharpness, and a good comp. My only issue is the bright area behind the butterfly. If you can tone this down more (or remove it) this image will be over the top!

[Adrian David]

Very nice pose of this butterfly, good sharpness, and a mint condition exemplar. The flower is looking good too...:S3:

[Jerry van Dijk]

Hi Ken, wonderful butterfly, nice perch and great composition. Too bad about the bright spot behind it. Actually, I'm more distracted by the two OOF green spots to the right of the butterfly, which seem to compete for attention. A little toning down would do the trick. The edges of the wings seem a bit soft where the front and back wings meet. Maybe a little selective sharpening?

[PRABIR BHATTACHARYYA]

Nice one Ken! The bright spot is a bit of a distraction, but not much.
The shot as it is gives a very good detail of the species.

[Ken Childs]

Thanks everyone for your comments. :S3:

I'll have to take another stab at removing that bright spot.