Water Lily and Pads Before the Storm

[John Storjohann]

Shot under a very dark sky on Saturday morning...100-400 set at 320mm, f/32@1/6. RAW image cropped and processed in LR; tweaked regionally for tone and color in Viveza. A little bit of clean up on the pads and petals. In the past I've used Helicon Focus to stack shots for greater depth of field..sometimes conditions just don't allow shooting for stacks...yet I'm finding that diffraction becomes an issue past f/11 and a real issue from f/22 on...any suggestions/comments welcome.

[Jay Sheinfield]

Hi John, This is simply beautiful. The only thoughts I have would be a pinch off the top and consider evicting or maybe darkening the rolled up pad. That's purely my personal preference, as I enjoy looking at it as is.

[Julie Kenward]

Another beautiful waterlily, john! I also think I'd take a slice off the top here.

A minor point - but I feel its worth mentioning - is that the lily feels like you're photographing it from the back side because of the way it is leaning. A little higher angle might have fixed this, or shooting from what is the UR side of this image instead of the LL. It doesn't take away from the beauty and depth you caught here but I'd be willing to bet if that flower were leaning more towards than away from us it would have taken this image up another notch - making it nearly perfect.

[John Storjohann]

Judy and Jay, thank you for your comments and suggestions.

Jay, good call on darkening the rolled-up pad a bit...I did a quick curve to darken the image, filled the mask with black and then painted over that pad...I think it helps! I did take a little off the top...I think that could go either way...it will be interesting to see what others think as well.

Judy, I couldn't agree more...just wasn't sure how to physically achieve it with this particular bloom! This one was in a very large circular basin at the Botanical Garden in St. Louis..I was as high as I could get...and couldn't get an angle that would show more of the face of the bloom unless I went to the far side...and then I was way too far, at least with my current setup, to get the image I wanted without very extensive cropping. Now if I could just afford that 800...or if they would let me wade in the basin....:t3...but I do appreciate the suggestions! We're on the same page..and I'm hoping to work the lilies again over the next two Saturdays.

[Joe Senzatimore]

Fine job on the re-post. This would make a beautiful print. The color and detail are stunning.

[Dave Leroy]

Lovely colour and detail in the flower. The pads add a lot but the flower is so well done I might look at a big crop to try and isolate flower. Personal preference and I am sure not what you were looking for.

I also prefer the repost and interesting observation by Julie.

Very well done.

Dave

[Steve Maxson]

Hi John. Beautiful colors - the flower is spectacular! Nice job of incorporating the suggested tweaks in the repost. Jules makes a good point about the flower angle - though it sounds like there was little you could do about that in this instance. Nevertheless, this is a very strong image!

[John Storjohann]

Jules! I misspelled your name...I am so sorry! Thank you for the comments and suggestions. Dave and Steve, I'm learning more and more about the little tweaks that can make the difference..these forums have been a blessing.

[Julie Kenward]

John, no sweat...I've been called MUCH worse!!! :Whoa!:

[Michel Pilon]

Hello John,

Wow! Very well done in my opinion and nice improvement with the repost. I agree about the comment concerning the pov but that being said, I really like the recall of the plant without the flower in the upper part of the pic. The flower's colors are impressive and you managed very well the exposition.

Very well done and TFS (Thanks For Sharing) :)

Michel

[Ken Childs]

Hi John, nice work on the OP and the suggested tweaks definitely take this one up a notch or 2!
I agree that these forums are a blessing.....I've learned a tremendous amount here and I'm still learning. :S3: