Spotted Phalaenopsis Orchid

[Charles Wesley]

Took this photo trying to improve my flash technique. Could not find the right BG so I used a freshly laundered T- shirt. Seems difficult to get sharpness when dealing with the texture and speckled anatomy of these orchids.

Canon EOS- 1D, EF 100- 400 mm. f/4.5- 5.6 IS lens , Canon 550 EX flash on reduced MP and tripod.
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Charlie Wesley
St. Augustine Beach, FL
http://naturesphotographs.com

[Julie Brown]

Charles, what was the ISO, SS, aperture and focal length for this shot?

[Charles Wesley]

Julie,

My guess is 1/ 100 sec @ f/ 8.0 250 mm. ISO 400.Thanks for asking...
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Charlie Wesley
St. Augustine Beach, FL

[Mike Moats]

Hey Charles, overall a well done image. Good sharp details and really like the color in the BG.

[Julie Kenward]

Love that BG, Charles! I wondered how you got it so diffuse - a t-shirt you say?

Excellent details on the flower petals - those little guys in the front could maybe use a little more sharpness - they sure are a bugger to get right! I love the comp and angle and the bend to the stem is wonderful!

[Charles Wesley]

Jules,

Thanks for the comments. My t- shirt was ruffled out of the dryer. I aimed my flash down at the BG at an oblique angle. Guess I got lucky. It received about 1 1/2 stops less light than the orchid as I recall.
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Charlie Wesley
St. Augustine Beach, FL

[Jackie Schuknecht]

Charles if you are having trouble focusimg have you tried live view if your camera has it???

[Charles Wesley]

Jackie,

Thanks for your concern. My 5D Mk 11 has live view but not my 1D which was used on this photo.

My problem was not focus. My 1D has excellent focus. It's more the texture and the anatomy of phalaenopsis orchids that make them difficult to capture. Sorry for the confusion I get really picky with focus and depth of field issues.That's just me...
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Charlie Wesley
St. Augustine Beach, FL

[Vida van der Walt]

Lovely flower and shot Charles. I think you did very well considering that you did not use a dedicated macro lens. Love the comp and colours as well.:)