Bearded Iris

[Jason Kinsey]

From the front yard this morning. Thanks for looking, C&C most appreciated!!

Nikon D300, ISO 200, Manual exposure, f/8, 1/60s, 80-200mm @ 155mm, 20mm extension tube, tripod, remote, sun diffused through clouds as main and an SB800 (at 1/16 or so power) shot through an umbrella about 45 or so degrees left of camera.

[kostas nianiopoulos]

its realy verry good , would u like to say few words how did u take this great BG ?

[Jason Kinsey]

Thanks, Kostas. This was the only bud that I could get to where my house wasn't in the background (they're growing against the house), and I wasn't able to get in with my macro lens like I wanted to without tearing up the rest of the irises. So put an 20mm extension tube on my 80-200 and backed up a little bit to get focused on the bud. Adding the side light let me separate the subject from the bg as well.

I love shooting at the longer focal lengths, and now that I have a good set of extension tubes I imagine I'll be shooting the 80-200 a lot more for macro. Thanks for the kind words.

[Mitch Haimov]

I like it, Jason. Don't think I've ever seen an image of an iris that hasn't opened yet--wish I'd thought of it. Love the BG--must have been far away to be so OOF at f/8. Nice use of flash; I wouldn't have guessed you used it if the post didn't tell me. I do find the lower flower behind the subject distracting and wish you had gently moved it aside before making this image. I also think it would be a stronger image if you had placed the subject to one side of the frame (along a rule of thirds line or perhaps even farther over). The good news is that, with a bit of cloning work and a crop you can make both of these changes in post processing if you are so inclined. (Doing it at the time of capture would have been easier/quicker of course...)

[kostas nianiopoulos]

Thanks, Kostas. This was the only bud that I could get to where my house wasn't in the background (they're growing against the house), and I wasn't able to get in with my macro lens like I wanted to without tearing up the rest of the irises. So put an 20mm extension tube on my 80-200 and backed up a little bit to get focused on the bud. Adding the side light let me separate the subject from the bg as well.

I love shooting at the longer focal lengths, and now that I have a good set of extension tubes I imagine I'll be shooting the 80-200 a lot more for macro. Thanks for the kind words.


Verry good job well done :)

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Jason. You captured a very nice image - I like the soft light and subtle use of flash, the clean background, and the sharpness and detail in the bloom. Like Mitch, I would suggest removing the whitish second bud at the bottom (should be easy to do using a quick mask), and experimenting with some off-center comps. Overall, this is well done.

[Andrew McLachlan]

Very nice Jason. Love the comp. I am rather jealous as my Daffodils haven't even bloomed yet!

[Jason Kinsey]

Very nice Jason. Love the comp. I am rather jealous as my Daffodils haven't even bloomed yet!

Andrew, mine have been gone for about 3 weeks now!!!!

Thanks for the input folks, I'll tweak it and repost it in the next day or so.

[Brendan Dozier]

Like the simplicity and illustrated look to this composition, Jason. Nice colors and detail.
Agree about experimenting with different subject placement in frame, but nicely done!

[Anita Bower]

Purple on green--glorious! Love the simplicity. The transluscence on the papery bit on the lower part of the bud is captured nicely. Wonderful curving lines going up the bud. Others have made good suggestions. Your choice to find the one bud that had a clean bg is rewarded in this lovely image.