It's spring so it's macro time

[terrib]

Finally, it's spring and I'm home and the wind died down long enough to try out the extension tubes I bought a while back. I explored the limits of my tripod to get low to the ground. I managed to get a few shots before the sneezing ensued. Haven't done much macro so don't really know where to begin self-evaluation. So any C&C is appreciated.

#1 I am undecided about whether the exposure should be brought up on this a bit.



#2 Very common wildflower in our field

[SilverYeou]

Hello Terri.
I like your pics the way they are. Specially like the first for the color contrast and the shining spots on the petals of the flower. Would you know the name of the number 1?
You are right, it is spring and it's time for MACRO (my favorite)!

[Geoff F]

With #1 Terri, you don't want to increase the highlights any more. You could try working on the shadows but I suspect it wouldn't be any improvement. In fact, brightening the dark background could be a mistake; and you are liable to lose that deep purple colouration.

When adjusting brightness on tricky subjects I sometimes use a Curves Adjustment Layer but set the layer blend mode to Luminosity which changes the brightness not the saturation.

Creating a duplicate layer and changing the blend mode also works.

[terrib]

Thanks, Geoff and Lu for your comments and helpful advice.

Lu, I'm sorry I have not identified this flower. It grows wild in our field in Texas - a tiny cluster of flowers atop a long slender stem.