Common Blue - Polyommatus icarus

[Jonathan Ashton]

Camera Model Canon EOS 7D
Firmware Firmware Version 1.2.1
Shooting Mode Aperture-Priority AE
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/125
Av( Aperture Value ) 16.0
Metering Mode Evaluative Metering
Exposure Compensation 0
ISO Speed 400
Lens EF180mm f/3.5L Macro USM
Image Quality RAW
Flash On
Flash Type External E-TTL
E-TTL II flash metering Evaluative flash metering
Flash Exposure Compensation -1 2/3
Shutter curtain sync 1st-curtain sync
White Balance Mode Auto
AF Mode AI Servo AF
AF area select mode Manual selection

All comments welcome.

[Paul Lagasi]

Sweet image Jon..like the sharpness, color, and comp...TFS

[Julie Kenward]

Oh Jon! Just a step or two to the right and you would have had one totally screamin' image. I do like what you've done here - the exposure and crop are very nicely handled...I just want a tiny bit more "face" to look at. I like the streaky BG as it looks natural and is not distracting and I think you handled the yellows nicely although I suspect you could pull them back just a tiny bit more.

[OvidiuCavasdan]

Very nice composition, sharp and great details on BF. I like the BG and the flower. Yellows look good to me. Excellent!

[Jim Bridges]

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[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Jonathan,
Oh yeah.....a little more towards us would have been off the charts!!!.....but it would have also changed the positionof the flowers which are a strong elemnt of this image. Adding a couple of points of blue in color balance should take care of the yellows..... but this is still an excellent shot....turn would have just set a whole other level!:cheers:

[Jonathan Ashton]

Jules, Roman, this head turn was in my mind when I took the shot, it just would not do it for me and moving the camera had minimal effect other than to disturb the surrounding foliage. I have other "nearly shots" with the same butterfly on a thistle plant and several small coppers too - all nearly shots but the wind was blowing and the foliage was very dense, still, if it was always easy it would not be fun!;)

[Ken Childs]

Other than the profile, this shot is really nice for all the reasons mentioned above.

These small butterflies seem to always turn away from a camera lens. Move to the right and they'll spin further to the right, keeping just ahead of the perfect shot. :p

[Mike Moats]

Hey Jonathan, I think it looks freat as is. Good details, colors, and BG. Well done.

[Anita Bower]

Lovely! Great colors. Beautiful detail. Very nice!