I took the morning off to go out and photograph one of my favorite flowers along with Damselflies. This very large Bee get coming back to the Lotus so I patiently stayed with it until I was able to get a handful of images I was happy with. I could not have timed it better as far as being able to capture all the different stages of the beautiful flowers life in just this one visit. I manipulated the original sharp image with a number of filters and PS effects, including PB, Topaz, Nik & On One filters until I was afraid I would be left with no more pixels to play with in the image, so I left it as is. :w3 Thanks to the BPN members who motivated & inspired me with all the recent nice Lotus flower images that they have posted. Nothing too new or OFTB here but I just wanted to share. BTW for this image I used my 600mm coupled with the 1.4 and extension tubes and manually focused.
08-13-2011, 05:42 AM
Mitch Carucci
Dramatic image. Intrigued that you used a 600mm!
08-13-2011, 07:49 AM
Mark Fuge
Very nice image and application, Susan.
Like the lighting on the pedals.
08-13-2011, 07:59 AM
Susan Candelario
Mitch & Mark, Thanks for your comments! Mitch, I did have my 180mm for did use the 600mm for a number of shots.
08-13-2011, 08:42 AM
Dave Mills
Hi Susan, Nicely handled composition along with good bee placement. Through the use of filters you created a pleasing, soft look but yet all the important areas are well defined. The even lighting is soft which brings out the yellows and the pastel colors and makes for an overall beautiful image!
08-13-2011, 01:31 PM
John Storjohann
Hi Susan;
I love the soft, pastel colors..particularly the pinks / purples of the petals and soft yellow of the petals toward the seed pod...the lines flowing through the composition lead your eye through the image nicely, and I like the filtering effect you've applied as well. It might be interesting to crop the image a bit differently...a bit off the top, a bit off the bottom, and extend the left side..but that's a matter of taste. Aren't lotus addicting? :t3
08-13-2011, 02:09 PM
Susan Candelario
Thanks, Dave & John your comments & suggestions are very much appreciate it. And yes they are addicting... did not want to stop shooting them yesterday morning as well as the water lilies. :w3
08-13-2011, 02:16 PM
Indranil Sircar
Beautiful composition, Susan. Lovely soft colors and lighting. I like the pb effect on the flower. I would have preferred to lighten the bee just a little to get a bit of the detail and to match with the beautiful top light, if it were mine.
08-13-2011, 09:05 PM
Jay Sheinfield
Beautiful filter application on the Lotus. The colors really make this stand out, and the bee is a really nice touch! Excellent.................
08-14-2011, 09:26 AM
Susan Candelario
Thanks, Indranil & Jay! I appreciate your comments and suggestions.
08-14-2011, 10:57 PM
Judy Howle
I like the composition and the smoothness from the filtering. The bee was a nice bonus!
