Number 3 is the one for me Ken, lovely shot.
Number 2 looks a bit over processed. Did you have to try and rescue it?
NUmber 1 is a nice web, but unfortunately the background is a bit too distracting for my taste.
One if the reasons I love this forum is that I can see pictures of brand new blossom just as the leaves are starting to turn ready for autumn at home.
As Steve says - 3.
Thank you for viewing and commenting Steve and Bobo. Much appreciated. Actually very little was done on 2 Steve. It was pretty much as garish as what you saw. It was the droplets on the web which I was after. Unfortunately the pink blossoms are not the best.
Hi Ken, I like all three for different reasons. I love the symmetry and detail in the first one but it feels like it needs a spider to make it complete. I like the dew best in the second one but would love to see that one with the camera more to the right to stretch the web view out and make it easier to increase the focus. I think I like the third one best but (there's often a BUT isn't there?), I feel the bottom of the web being cropped off shifts my focus back to the flowers and thus I see two competing subjects rather than one main subject (the web) and one complementing subject (the flowers).
I often find myself looking back at my shots and saying things like this but then by carefully evaluating what I like and think should be improved, next time it works a little better and a little better until eventually I am able to see the entire scene exactly the way I want the final image to be. I know I'm getting close when I find that I am cropping only to change the aspect ratio and not to eliminate things I didn't see when I pressed the shutter.
I'm rambling on again, a result of not being able to express myself clearly and succinctly but hopefully this is making sense and is helpful.
Hi Frank
Thank you so much for your c and c which I found most helpful. Despite your modest self deprecation, they made perfect sense and, as usual from you, were incisive and erudite; spot on the mark! Your insight into framing properly in the first instance so that cropping was only a secondary issue for Aspect Ratio was very useful and gave me something interesting to work towards. Thinking on your comment I reckon I am relying too much on cropping to achieve good framing, with 'Aspect Ratio' running a very poor second, if it ever gets off the bench and into the 'game.'
Cheers
Ken