Mexican Petunia

[Judy Howle]

I hope this qualifies as chiaroscuro, assuming they can be in color too (?).

I used Topaz Adjust night glow to get the main effect, but I brightened it a good bit, then I did some other work on colors and painted black over the background elements that were a bit too bright. I changed to color to more magenta as it seemed to pop more than the bluish purple color. I used Topaz Detail and sharpening to bring out the drops.

[Cheryl Slechta]

Judy, Oh my gosh, this is stunning. The detail and the water drops really make the image and I love the curving lines inside the flower. I'm undecided about the lighter rain drop behind the petunia - it will be interesting to see what other people think.

[Judy Howle]

Thanks Cheryl. I was undecided about that drop too so I left it but it would probably look better removed.

[Diane Miller]

Quite stunning! And the somewhat shallow DOF works beautifully! Mostly sharp, with great detail, and then some softness at the edges of the petals.

[Judy Howle]

Thanks Diane. I shot it at f/10 to increase the DOF. The sky was overcast so the SS was only 1/60s.

[Cindy Cone]

Beautiful image, Judy! I love the detailed drops and wonderful colors. I think I'd vote to darken or remove the lighter drop.

[Anita Bower]

The water drops definitely pop. Lovely color of the flower. I like the detail. I'd take out that drop that is not on the flower. The whole flowers pops!

[Judy Howle]

Re-worked image...

[Anita Bower]

YES, to the reworked image. :-)

[Paul Lagasi]

What can I add Judy, lovely work. You've come a long way. Well done

[Cheryl Slechta]

Perfect!

[Kerry Perkins]

Judy, the repost is amazing! Yes, chiaroscuro is about light and not color. The term is used to describe the paintings of Rembrandt and other artists who used single-candle illumination sources. The Wikipedia article is very good - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiaroscuro

[Jackie Schuknecht]

What an electric colour of purple Judy! I like the repost, and all those droplets.

[LinzRiverBalmer]

One of my favorite flower species done really well, nice job