Hi Ed, I like the colors alot here .I like the sharpness of the front turned petal, I wish the bud were in back of the bloom and not your main focus-but that's just my opinion and others may feel differently. BG colors are sweet and I might tone down the one spot above the bloom-Really nicely done and I am enjoying your new series very much-I love Ranunculus,they remind me of old fashioned cabbage roses.
The bud in front doesn't really bother me but there are two red spots - the one Denise mentioned and one below between the bud and the flower - those could both stand to be pulled back just a bit.
Geez but these are beautiful images! The red BG's are gorgeous!!! You got wonderful DOF in this one as well.
Thanks to all the folks who responded either publicly here on forum or privately via PM. I appreciate all the comments and feedback. The color issue is interesting to me. I generally prefer bright, bold colors both in the flowers and in the backgrounds. Granted, once in a while I cross the line and oversaturate and I get a print that looks terrible. But most of time, I feel I am at the edge but on the right side of it. I did desaturate the orange Ranunculus in the earlier image because I felt the saturation took some of the detail. But here, I don't want detail in the background. I just want big, bold beautiful patches of color. And I think that is what the reds deliver. I'm not sure I explained that as clearly as I wanted but hopefully it is clear enough to follow.