Warning~ another unrepentent veggie shot!

[JBW]

Same problem as a really big bug... where to put the focus.

[Shadowman]

Nice capture, I think a tighter crop eliminating the yellow petals would be more interesting. I would also add a bit more contrast to the scene as shown.

[JBW]

Nice capture, I think a tighter crop eliminating the yellow petals would be more interesting. I would also add a bit more contrast to the scene as shown.

petals on the left, right or both? A little more contrast would be as in hobbit sized little?

[DickyOZ]

A lot of detail there. I like that crop. A slightly different camera angle might have got a bit more of the yellow petals in focus.

[Manfred M]

Brian - the flower is usually what we look at when we look at shots that have them in it. In this image, you toss it aside and mistreat it terribly. Poor, abused flower... It is the prettiest and brightest part of the image, yet you chose to not show it in the best light.

This is not really working for me...

[JBW]

Brian - the flower is usually what we look at when we look at shots that have them in it. In this image, you toss it aside and mistreat it terribly. Poor, abused flower... It is the prettiest and brightest part of the image, yet you chose to not show it in the best light.

This is not really working for me...

I grant you it is the brightest but I am not so sure about the prettiest. Which is the reason I placed the focus where I did. I find the plant structure and the cucumber fruit(?) fascinating and beautiful. Then again I like old English motorcycles and the original Austen Mini.

[JBW]

A lot of detail there. I like that crop. A slightly different camera angle might have got a bit more of the yellow petals in focus.

But it would have really messed with the background.

[Wavelength]

Nice... an ash guard in the becoming?

[Geoff F]

I think, Brian, this is another of those situations where you really need focus stacking to enable reality to catch up with your imagination.

Everything works nicely regarding the prickly stem and embryo fruit but it is impossible to also have the flower sharply focused with just one shot.

As an alternative, crop the right side to just show half of the flower?

[JBW]

Nice... an ash guard in the becoming?

Not quite, it is a very young cucumber waiting for the petal to fall.

[JBW]

I think, Brian, this is another of those situations where you really need focus stacking to enable reality to catch up with your imagination.

Everything works nicely regarding the prickly stem and embryo fruit but it is impossible to also have the flower sharply focused with just one shot.

As an alternative, crop the right side to just show half of the flower?

Something like this? And is this the type of shot where the Tamrom 24 70 would shine?

[xpatUSA]

Something like this? And is this the type of shot where the Tamrom 24 70 would shine?

Here's my two pennorth, Brian. I was going to suggest a higher f-number but this one was shot at f/18 according to the EXIF. So, if stacking is not attractive for your workflow, an alternative is stepping back from the subject rather than filling the frame with it. Then, you would be striking a balance between lack of resolution and lack of DOF.

Some DOF numbers for an APS-C sensor and f/18:

At 1:3 magnification and with the stalk 10.5" from your sensor, 19mm

At 1:6 magnification and stalk 16.1" from your sensor, 58mm

At 1:3 and assuming the flower to 30mm in diameter I chosen it to appear as 10mm tall in the sensor plane. At 1:6 magnification, that makes the flower 5mm tall in the sensor plane so you would be cropping up to 2/3 of the as-shot image but should have adequate DOF.

You set the magnification by paying attention to the framing unless you happen to buy a Sigma lens that extends - because they often put magnification marks on the barrel (Sigma roolz, OK). Paying attention to the framing means knowing your sensor dimensions esp. the height. So if you have a flower that is 30mm tall and you want a magnification of 1:6 then you are aiming at 30/6 = 5mm tall on the sensor and that means 1/3 height in the viewfinder. And easy example, I know, but it's to demonstrate the principle.

Please read this more than once, Brian, and do not hesitate to ask for clarification.

[JBW]

Here's my two pennorth, Brian. I was going to suggest a higher f-number but this one was shot at f/18 according to the EXIF. So, if stacking is not attractive for your workflow, an alternative is stepping back from the subject rather than filling the frame with it. Then, you would be striking a balance between lack of resolution and lack of DOF.

Some DOF numbers for an APS-C sensor and f/18:

At 1:3 magnification and with the stalk 10.5" from your sensor, 19mm

At 1:6 magnification and stalk 16.1" from your sensor, 58mm

At 1:3 and assuming the flower to 30mm in diameter I chosen it to appear as 10mm tall in the sensor plane. At 1:6 magnification, that makes the flower 5mm tall in the sensor plane so you would be cropping up to 2/3 of the as-shot image but should have adequate DOF.

You set the magnification by paying attention to the framing unless you happen to buy a Sigma lens that extends - because they often put magnification marks on the barrel (Sigma roolz, OK). Paying attention to the framing means knowing your sensor dimensions esp. the height. So if you have a flower that is 30mm tall and you want a magnification of 1:6 then you are aiming at 30/6 = 5mm tall on the sensor and that means 1/3 height in the viewfinder. And easy example, I know, but it's to demonstrate the principle.

Please read this more than once, Brian, and do not hesitate to ask for clarification.

I have read it more than once and once it has percolated a bit I will be asking questions.

[Geoff F]

That crop is the sort of thing I had in mind, Brian, but there are also other options and you might even get away with showing the left hand stem as well. Probably a case of trying a few alternatives before finally deciding on the best version. Maybe two images are needed to show both the wider scene and your latest crop.

[JBW]

That crop is the sort of thing I had in mind, Brian, but there are also other options and you might even get away with showing the left hand stem as well. Probably a case of trying a few alternatives before finally deciding on the best version. Maybe two images are needed to show both the wider scene and your latest crop.

I hadn't considered more than 1 image.