I really liked this image in it's "all green" stage but Bruce's crocus images made me take a second look at it in B&W. I did darken the leaf on the far right side...not sure if I over did it or not (feel free to tell me!) but I wanted a little more contrast between all the light and midtones so I went for it.
Canon 40D, EF 100mm f/2.8 macro
f6.3 @ 1/100th, ISO 200
Manual mode, Pattern metering, Sunny WB
Processed in ACR & CS4; converted using a b&w adjustment layer and a levels adjustment.
No crop.
With the color original likely a monochrome study, with variations in intensity and shading of green, here you get texture and shadow forming a different type of abstract. I find color ones like this can be ethereal or atmospheric, while the B&W give more apparent sharpness, more contrast, and allow a different exploration of the shapes and textures.
Or, in other words, I really like this B&W, and I'm glad you did the conversion. The only thing that tugs at me the wrong way is the light patchs on the mid and LR edge, since they are a little bright and blend with the backlit rim of the right leaf. Vignetting after the fact, if not able to reposition in the field? Maybe. Small matter, anyway.
Almost Iris
