Theme: Albertinia Heath

[Michael Gerald-Yamasaki]

Greetings. Taken during a visit to the University of California, Santa Cruz Arboretum in the South African Section. Species Erica baueri.



Taken with a 85 mm tilt-shift lens with tilt set vertically at f/22 which gives a larger dof than just the f/22. An array of filters used Nik Silver Efex Pro, Topaz Impressions modified pencil sketch setting or maybe Da Vinci, various blending modes used for color and tone adjustments, Topaz Adjust, also.

Thanks for looking.

Cheers,

-Michael-

[Kerry Perkins]

Hi Michael, I like the gentle S curve of the stem and the arrangement of the flowers along it. The image seems a little dark to me and I would be tempted to brighten in up a bit.

[Anita Bower]

I completely agree with Kerry. I will add that I love that beautiful blue--white and blue go so very well together.
How did you achieve the blue bg? Was it sky?

[Nancy Bell]

Another vote to lighten the image. I think the "pencil sketching" texture adds interest to the image, especially in all that saturated blue sky. Those tilt shift lens have always intrigued me. How do you like yours?

[Wendy Kates]

I really like the textured background, and the white blooms against the blue. The darker tone doesn't bother me.

[Michael Gerald-Yamasaki]

Kerry, Anita, Nancy, Wendy,

Thanks much for the comments. They are greatly appreciated. Yeah, it is a bit dark I tried to keep the contrast down to control the whites and went a bit overboard. Taken in bright morning sun.

That's blue sky, Anita, darkened with multiply blend and probably a bit with tonal passes with SEP and luminosity blend.

Nancy, the tilt/shift I have is an interesting lens. At 85 mm it is a little long for the architectural/landscape applications that are the usual use. But I'm not much for tripods, using it hand-held is also not traditional. But all the better for OOTB work ;-)
I like using a vertical tilt that gives a corridor of focus (that moves from left to right or right to left depending on the tilt direction when you "focus"... it takes some getting used to). And combined with a small aperture the dof can be very wide (within the bounds of the tilt axis). I at times have been tempted to get a set up with all the movements (but I get tilt, not so much shift, and I want to add swing? which makes my head hurt). Well, in short, I like the lens a lot but it clearly goes OOTB with my use (so I have to be in that mood when shooting as well as when processing).

Cheers,

-Michael-

[Nancy Bell]

Michael, thank you for your take on the tilt-shift lens. I always had the impression it was a bit like patting your head and rubbing your tummy at the same time! Maybe I'll look for a used one to experiment with.