Fly on Daisy

[Brendan Dozier]

Here's another from the botanic gardens. The light was a bit bright, but I liked the detail on the fly. Anyone have ID for this guy?

7D, EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM, tripod
1/640
14.0
ISO 400

C & C welcome & appreciated,

- Brendan

[Don Lacy]

Nice detail and comp.

[Nick Palmieri]

This one works as presented. Maybe I would do a tighter crop..but no biggy for me..I like the details in the head and wings...You also managed to maintain nice detail in white flower. Very nice!

[Julie Kenward]

I also like the angle and the crop although I think you could also take off a thin strip from the bottom if you so desired. For me, the one thing I'm not loving is the yellows on the daisy - they feel a bit dark and muddy - like they have too much black in them. You might try to selectively lower the blacks and see if that leaves them a bit brighter to match the bright whites they are next to. Very nice DOF here...and a lovely image overall.

[Jason Stander]

Great shot... love the detail, comp... but for me as the image is presented the subject at hand looks very soft... maybe a slight selective sharping would bring out those amazing details... agree on the yellows on the flower... but great great exposure on the fly... but overall a lovely image... WD!:w3

[christopher galeski]

nice image Brendan,like the comp,thanks.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Brendan,
Great observations and suggestions above. The yellow will be an easy tweak and I do think another round of USM on the fly?..... will work. I do think if you are in there.....lighten the body a few points.....mostly because if you lighten the yellows.....the critter may get a bit lost. Just something to keep in mind when tweaking and the suggested tweaks will definitely make this a keeper!

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Brendan. This is a type of Flower Fly (Family Syrphidae) - that narrows it down to only 870 N. American species. Most are excellent mimics of bees or wasps (though they are completely harmless). This one might be a Drone Fly (Eristalis tenax) - or something similar. I like the comp with the fly turned toward us and the head in the ROT position. Good suggestion by Jules to try pulling some black out of the yellows - I learned something new today. :S3: To my eye it appears that the sharpest part of the fly is the rear half - you might try some additional sharpening on the front half to see if it helps. A couple tweaks should put this one over the top!

[Susan Candelario]

Great details and colors on the fly, Brendan! Nice work!

[John Storjohann]

Brendan, I agree with the other suggestions, at least in part..maybe tone down the yellow on the flower just a smidge, and sharpen the head of the bee/fly a bit as well. I love the composition..the curve of the flower draws your eye through the image, and the "rays" of the petals draws your eye to the bee/fly. Well done!

[Brendan Dozier]

Thanks everyone for your comments and suggestions. Worked on the yellows as Jules suggested, using selective color and color balance, and added some more sharpening.

[Julie Kenward]

Much improved on the yellows Brendan!