Spring starting to show!

[John Christian]

Nikon D80/105mm/2.8 Micro Lense/ISO 100/f11 at 1/4 sec/Cropped/Shapened/Processed Direct Positive in LR2/Tripod/Chocolate Lab laying on my back

Spring is starting to show in Michigan (finally). I have killed more nursery plants to count this winter. I was playing with Lightroom presets. I like the coolness it applied to the picture. It really pulled out the yellow veins of the flower. It was windy and I was having a hard time getting the sharpness required. If you look at the stem you can see some softness.

Not sure what it is...anyone? A bunch of these little things about 3 inches off the ground.

[Mike Moats]

Hey John, I'm on my laptop so it's hard to judge on the color as it has a blueish cast, and maybe that's what you were going for, if so you did well. The flower pops nice against the dark BG.

[Julie Kenward]

John, that looks like a crocus to me...they sit very low to the ground and are usually the first spring bulbs to pop out of the ground.

So it's finally spring in Michigan, eh? I'm going to have to email my best friend and see if she agrees with you!

I am not too sure about the blue color cast...it feels "off" to me. I'd much rather see the whites white - even if they are on the more muted side. Let's see what the others think...

[dawn campbell]

Yup, that's a crocus.....

[denise ippolito]

John, I see where you were going with this and I like it. It has a soft light glow.

[Bruce Murden]

Hi John, and Welcome to BPM, Almost-Neighbor!

I got the blue cast on my monitor also. If it's there in your original, I'd warm up the image (color balance) a bit in LR, and work with contrast and maybe recovery to see if a bit more detail can be pulled out of the petals. Otherwise, it's a nice softly-lit image of a gentle flower about to fully bloom.

Looking forward to more from you!
Bruce

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hi John,
While I generally don't mind the cool tones......I agree that warming it may be the way to go & to bring out those whites some more. Try messing with some fill flash in the future...even the pop up toned down.this also helps to bring out some details and is very useful on windy days.

[John Christian]

Removed the preset Direct positive in LR2 and touched the curve a little and boosted contrast. Also, cropped a little tighter.