Lonely snail

[Jerry van Dijk]

Captured this small snail on an overcast day on my plant potting table, on which it seemed a bit lost. To capture the mood, I kept the gloomy colors and left a lot of BG around it, which some may not like. Still not sure about this crop or PP, so C&C are very welcome.

Panasonic DMC-FZ18, handheld, lens resting on table, 17 mm (102 mm eq.), Suntec 4+ closeup lens, ISO-100, F/3.6, 1/10 sec, EC -0.3, pattern metering, aperture priority, RAW.<O:p></O:p>
PP in ACR 5.0. adjustments on WB, exposure, recovery. Added clarity, vibrance, sharpening and NR. Applied chromatic aberration correction to get rid of red fringing on the slimey highlights.<O:p</O:p

[Julie Kenward]

Neat image, Jerry! I have two minor suggestions for you that I think might strengthen this. First, I'd take 2/3 of the bottom off the image. This would move the snail to the ROT's position vertically within the frame and put more emphasis on him as the subject. I like all the little bits of debris around him but the large piece directly in front of him is a bit overwhelming - I'd probably clone that one out. I like the mood you set with this - he feels all alone in the world!

[Jerry van Dijk]

Which looks something like this. I also took a little off the left
I think it's a great improvement. Thank's for the suggestions Jules!

[Ian Cassell]

Jerry, I like it a lot. I agree with the FG crop - I might even do a touch more.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Jerry,
VG advice given by Jules above. I too like the mood and feel and it is sharp where it is needed. I do think you could also go pano with the presentation for a slightly different take as well as some off the top of your repost. Many options....all would work! I think the angle you chose here is what really makes this image work.....very nicely done!

[Jonathan Ashton]

I agree with the previous comments, I too like the image and the sense of isolation the subject has. Hey good job you didn't go below 1/10 sec these guys can move quickly when they have to!:)

[Jerry van Dijk]

Thanks for the comments! I tried several crops, which all seemed to work quite good. Jonathan, I know exactly what you mean! I actually had to place the little guy back, because he had almost wandered off the table by the time I had my camera ready :D!

[Anita Bower]

Good image. Really like the angle you chose--eye level. I like the crop and would probably crop a bit off the top, and would clone out the little bits of stuff. I like the colors and subdued image. Nice job.