Pac Man Leaf

[John Storjohann]

Another leaf that caught my eye...between the textures and color I was really drawn to this particular plant. Shot with the 180mm, f/22@1/6. RAW file processed in LR, then brought into PS for a few regional tweaks. Thanks for looking.

[Dave Leroy]

The lower right corner and the way it curls over is really an eye catcher. Red is a big draw also. Perhaps it is my eyes and there certainly seems to be lots of detail in lower left centre but is there a bit of a blur?
Another lovely photo with lots of lines and shapes. Always fun to exam the bits and pieces of plants.

Dave

[John Storjohann]

Good catch, Dave. The leaf had a bit of a fold there...were it dipped away from the plane of the camera...and between that and the fact that I probably wasn't perfectly parallel to the leaf, I simply ran out of DOF, even at f/22. I have another version where I backed up a bit and used a different focus point where that area is sharp...but then the URC is blurred! Something to watch for in the future.

[Bob Miller]

John.....I think i would crop from either the top or bottom and darken the top half of the leaf....but that just me.....Nice work!

[John Storjohann]

Bob, I think you're right..to be honest, this is one of those images that the more I look at it I'm thinking more and more, "Back to the drawing board". There are some elements of the image I like, but it doesn't seem to have "legs" to me...it's a nice initial impression, but it doesn't linger on the palette! (Can you tell I like wine? :t3). Thanks for your comments and suggestions!

[Steve Maxson]

Hi John. Another interesting leaf with lots of patterns and texture - and now with colors too. I think the image could be more dramatic if it was a little darker overall. Once I notice the soft area in the LL (pointed out by Dave) it starts to draw my eye. Also, the center of the leaf is in the center of the frame - not my favorite comp. I think some different crops might make a big difference. I might suggest starting with a crop from the bottom - about to where the bend is in the red (though I can see where you'd want to keep all of that red). Then you might try taking a little off either the left or right to make this a vertical comp. Just some thoughts for you to experiment with. :S3:

[Ken Childs]

Hi John, like Steve, I really like the patterns and textures you're capturing on these leaves. Looking this over, I started coming up with suggestions of what you might do to improve this edit and then I realized that a tighter crop might be the easiest way to go. Cropping in on all sides....moving the center of the leaf to the LL ROT position would remove some of the distractions already mentioned. Steve's suggestion or darkening this also sounds like a good idea. :S3:

[John Storjohann]

Steve and Ken, thank you for your comments and suggestions. I have played and played with this image...using your suggestions, trying some of my own...and I've just never found something that matches my original hopes for it. I'm chalking this one up as one of those "almost, but not quite" images that will draw me back to similar opportunities in the future...so I can hopefully get closer the next time around! Thank you again!