Spider Chrysanthemum

[Cheryl Flory]

Canon 40D
Tamron 17-50 mm
50mm

1/25"
F6.3
ISO 200
EC +.33

In ACR I raised clarity +35, brightness +50, and raised vibrance.

While there are several things I like about this image, including the backlighting at the tips of the petals, the picture still doesn't "grab" me and I can't figure out what is wrong with it. and I can't figure out the best way to crop it. I have cropped a little off the bottom and left side, all out of focus.

What do you think?

Thanks!

[Ken Childs]

Cheryl, here's my quick reply. I think the main problem is it's too dark. Try lightening it up and boosting the contrast to get more pop. Cropping some off the bottom might help too. And never forget to clone out the imperfections like those tiny black spots that are showing near the LR.

I don't have time to work on it right now so I may have better suggestions later assuming my wife gives me some time off from work. :)

[Stuart Frohm]

I like the image, but the brilliance of the brightest tan "glob" in the center of the background could be distracting.

[Anita Bower]

Nice job with the colors and the bokeh.

I find that out of focus areas in the foreground are hard to pull off. That might be part of the problem. There is only a small part of the image in sharp focus, and it isn't strong enough to get my attention--I have to look for it.

It is hard to tell from this image what the subject is--the white part? If so, what is it?

The lovely bokeh pulls my eye away from the sharp areas of the petals.

Hope these observatioins help. :)

[Ken Childs]

I just had a quick go at it during my lunch break. Other than the obvious crop, I used curves to get the whites looking whiter and boosted the contrast a bit. Those gold spots in the BG are problematic. Not sure if toning them down more than I did would would help or if they should be cloned out.

[Cheryl Flory]

is this an improvement?
(gotta get a real macro lens. lol)

[Jerry van Dijk]

Hi Cheryl, agree that the BG is distracting. Furthermore, in the flower, there is no real point of interest to focus on. I think that is what makes flower closeups so difficult. If there's no bug on a flower, I really find it hard to make an interesting closeup image. You really need some leading or contrasting lines. There are some great examples of that in some recent posts.

[Julie Kenward]

I think Jerry's on to something...all those petals and no big stamen or pistol to concentrate on makes it hard to find the focal point. I'm wondering if you had move the flower so the petals presented across the bottom rather like a row of grass and then had the bokeh behind it - if that had worked? I do like the repost that you did - definitely an improvement. GET YOURSELF A MACRO LENS!!! Or, in the meantime, if you have a longer lens (say a 70-200) you might get a close up filter for it and try from that vantage point.

[denise ippolito]

Cheryl, I think you get an A+ for effort here. No macro lens and a very difficult subject to get right. I like the way you are thinking of different perspectives. Keep them coming.:)