Fly Agaric

[Simon Wantling]

Lots of these around today at a local hot spot so thought I'd share it with you. Comments really appreciated.

Settings were: Canon 7D, Sigma 105mm, f/5.6, SS 1/200, ISO 200, No flash, hand held, Spot Metering.

http://www.back-garden-moths.co.uk/7D/Fly Agaric 2.jpg

[Anita Bower]

What a wonderful mushroom! I really like the angle you chose--low down. The leaves and grass add interest. Nicely composed. Nicely blurred bg. It is always a challenge to balance sharpness of the subject and blur of bg. In this case, you sacrificed some sharpness at the top of the mushroom. I might try cloning the light colored area to the lower left of mushroom cap, and toning down the bluish areas in upper area. Thanks for sharing.

[Simon Wantling]

Thanks for the comments Anita, they are appreciated. Wonderful aren't they. I can see you point on the white patch below the left of the main body. I'm never tackled cloning yet. I do all my post processing in Aperture 3 so not sure how good that is at cloning compared to PP. Will give it a try. It's these little points which I think I need to watch to improve my images.

Thanks again.

Simon

[Ken Childs]

Simon, this is an interesting looking mushroom. I've seen some like this in my area but I've never got down to ground level to check them out more closely....it looks like I've been missing something.

There are a few things I think you could have done in the field to make this look even better. There's a pretty strong glare on the top of the 'shroom that might have been lessened if you had used something to shade the light coming in from above. I don't mind the leaves in the FG but the ones in the BG are distracting as are the blades of grass in front of the stem so next time you're out trying for this type of shot, consider doing some clean up beforehand. If this were mine, I'd do a significant crop off the top and a little off the left to get the subject out of the center of the image. Keep the shots coming....I'm looking forward to more of your work! :S3:

Please be sure to follow BPN's guidelines for posting. At 1200px tall and a file size of 392kb, this image is way over the size limit of 800px/200kb. We have these limits to make the photos easily accessible for all of our members, some of which are using dialup and/or small monitors. I'm using a 22" widescreen and I have to scroll up and down to see the entire image.

[Simon Wantling]

Hi Ken,

Thanks for your comments. I'll take all your suggestions on board and practice them in the field.

Apologies about the file size. Indeed it was an oversight on my part. I'll correct that for you tomorrow.

Thanks again

Simon

[Jerry van Dijk]

Hi Simon, wonderful mushroom and very good image quality. They're still my favorite kind, the classic gnome type! Good points already raised by Anita and Ken. I like the DOF falloff around the hood, which creates a sense of depth. I would crop of the top, just below the bluish stuff in the BG. This will focus the image completely on the mushroom.

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Simon. Beautiful colors and textures plus a nice low shooting angle. Anita, Ken, and Jerry have given you some very good suggestions to consider. Sometimes a little cleanup in the field before pushing the shutter can make a big difference in the final image. :S3: