Lily Bud

[Anita Bower]

Taken at Longwood Gardens Conservatory last week. I was trying to get the bud in focus and the colorful background blurred.

I would like opinions as to the bottom leaves (and the overall image too, of course). I cloned them out in another version of this, which I will post later or below. Which do you like best? I'm undecided, but leaning toward this one.

Konica Minolta 5D, 100mm macro, 1/60, f 6.3, ISO 400, manual metering and focus, auto WB, tripod, natural light, PS7: curves, levels, sat., contrast, selective color, some crop.

Anita Bower

[Anita Bower]

Here is the version with the lower leaves cloned out.

Anita

[Bogdan Coltea]

This is very nice. Good use of lines and shapes.
I like the second image more.
Could try to even out the background (tone and color).

[Mike Moats]

Hey Anita, good details and light. really like the color combination of the subject and the BG. Good diagonal positioning on the subject. I do like the second version without the bottom leaf, its cleaner looking.

[Anita Bower]

Thank you Bogdan and Mike. Here is the second image with the BG colors more even, at Bogdan's suggestion.

Anita :-)

[Mike Moats]

Hey Anita, I like the change in the BG.

[Jerry van Dijk]

Hi Aneta, lovely light you caught on this lily bud! I like your change the the BG colors, but I prefer the image with the leaves in it. Although the other version looks cleaner, I also find it less interesting. I would consider cloning out the two OOF bright spots in the LL corner. I'm wondering if the image would have benefitted from having the big green leaf, that is now cut off at the left of the image, fully in the frame. Nicely done!
- Jerry -

[denise ippolito]

Anita, I really like your final post .The BG colors are very nice and your bud is nice and sharp!

[Julie Kenward]

I like the final post the best as well but there's something about the composition...I want more of the stem in the image - it feels very tight in the frame at the top. The rest - the green against the magenta - it's beautiful! Nice DOF on the lily bud, too.

[Ed Vatza]

Hi Anita,

I like the composition and the final rework looks best to me. I will say that I am not as keen as some of the others on the background. To my eye, the background looks too colorful for the subject if that makes any sense. :)