Well, I'm back to my computer after having family staying at my house for the holiday. My twin nieces were sleeping on the floor in my computer room (it thinks it's a bedroom!) and I couldn't get to the computer! I wanted to take some pictures of the fireworks and make a nice image to post, but our fireworks show turned into a disaster - for those that don't know there was a terrible accident that left 35 people injured, one still in critical condition. One of the launch platforms fell over and shot fireworks into the crowd. It was bad, but fortunately none of us were in the path of the errant shells.
So, I decided to try something outside of my comfort zone and use my new macro lens. These little flowers are only about a half inch, or 12mm, long. I used several filters including Nik blur vignette and darken/lighten center, and also Topaz Clean. It was the first time I had tried to use the macro lens with a tripod, as my back doesn't allow me to do much and setting this up required some forbidden bending and lifting. Oh well, anything for art!
"It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera... they are made with the eye, heart, and head." - Henri Cartier Bresson
... So, I decided to try something outside of my comfort zone and use my new macro lens. Oh well, anything for art!
I understand that is what this forum is for! Those stretch your comfort zone times. Nice one for going OOYC. Sometimes experiments work better than the tried and true.
Glad you were out of harm's way, though I know it was horrific to see. Welcome safely back.
I am a big fan of Topaz Clean and I really like what it did to the image. I especially like the tiny squiggles & the reflection detail in the center of the flowers and the soft colors and symmetrical shapes of the petals, plus the interesting diagonal composition.
Yikes, that was a terrible accident and it must have been frightening to witness it. Fireworks seem to be a thing of the past in my community since the fear & reality of wild fire is too great to chance it.
Crown of Thorns
Originally Posted by Kerry Perkins
