I took this image a couple of months ago at Longwood Gardens Conservatory, Pennsylvania, USA, during their Chrysanthemum Festival. I would appreciate critiques. I'm a bit unsure about the out of focus petals in the foreground.
Konica Minolta 5D; 100mm Minolta macro; tripod; natural light; 1/80, f 2.8, ISO 100, manual exposure and focus, WB:daylight (I think). Post processing in PS7, basic levels, curves, contrast, saturation, selective color (I don't remember exactly what I did, but those are the ones I usually use).
Hi Anita, I like it, including the OOF petals. It's a bit busy, but it somehow gives a feeling of movement and dynamics, which in my view adds to the excitement of the picture. I like how you positioned the flowers head in the UR corner.
Anita, I agree with Jerry. Because the front petals are so totally out of focus my eye accepts them better than if they were partially OOF. What I really love about this is that all three colors are extremely saturated but none of the three goes over the line of realism. You took them to the edge and showed restraint - good for you! I also love the lighting on the yellow center - it has such depth and glow to it. Nice work!