Simplicity

[Ed Vatza]

Chicory

Canon Rebel XT; Sigma 150mm Macro lens; Canon 430 EX Flash with LumiQuest Softbox; Tripod-mounted

1/200 sec at f/16; ISO 800; 0 EV; FEC -1

[Alfred Forns]

I like it a lot Ed !!! Simple and beautiful composition Might move the flower lower and slight right !!! I like it a lot !!!

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Ed,
No wonder I didn't see this one............you were posting at the same time i was! Nice diagonal...(you are branching out!) and the BG is very complementary. I like the position where it is but debating the leaves on the stem..........may have wanted more of them! You are definitely handling these situations very well as of late!

[Bruce Murden]

Very nice -- and even at 1/200 it's hard to keep these guys from moving -- usually because of the vehicles speeding by. I agree that the comp would be stronger with it moved down and right, so the stem continues on and the flower opens up more into the frame, so it's not "bulls-eyed". That would also bring some more of the leaves into play.

[Steve Foss]

I really like this image. Chicory are very cool, and it's only since I've taken up photography seriously the last five years that I don't live in chicory country anymore.

Nits to date noted and agreed with.

It's also oversharpened, and if it looks too sharp on my CRT, it almost certainly looks too sharp on folks' LCDs. A diffusion disc would have muted that harsh sunlight.

So very pretty . . .

[John Cooper]

Beautifully displayed Ed - excellent detail and the delicate hue of the flower has lots of impact. I like the composition but a little space above the leaves would make it for me.

[Bill Whitney]

Ed..nice capture. Wonderful detail.Nice delicate color. I agree that the leaves/bud on left should either be brought all the way in or eliminated.

[Ed Vatza]

Thanks everyone for the feedback and comments. The positioning was a result of cropping to an 8x10 and taking a bit too much off the top moving the flower up a bit. And I understand the comment about the leaves.

Otherwise, I don't see the oversharpening (which I am guilty of doing once in a while). Does anyone else?

And you guys are good identifying the harsh light and all. These flowers were within spitting distance of where I had parked the car that morning. When I first looked at them around sunrise (before the Moth Mullein), the flowers were still closed. When I returned to the car several hours later and the sun was higher in the sky, the chicory were open and I made the images - harsh light and all!

Anyway, here is lower and to the right with more leaf (but it could probably still use more).

[Bill Whitney]

Ed...I like the repost. well done

[Mike Moats]

Hey Ed, I shoot alot with chicory, its photographs very well. I like the flower and stem, like Steve I'm not sure about the extra leaves. I think I like the first comp better, a little to much negative space above on the second.

[Robert Amoruso]

I agree with Mike on the recrop. The flower is the star of the image and too much BG drags it down. This is really a beautiful image Ed.

[Julie Kenward]

The repost is gorgeous! Well done, Ed.