Yellow, Orange, and Pink

[Suzan J]

Hello All: It has been a while since I visited the site. There have been a lot of projects to do, foremost, is planning our trip to England next month! I see that I have missed a huge amount of fabulous photos. It will take me quite some time to catch up. My granddaughters were visiting for a few weeks, and now that they have left, I have some time to re-visit my attempt at flower photography. I have learned that with a macro lens, the very tiny DOF will not allow the full bloom to be entirely in focus. For that reason, I am trying to capture interesting perspectives and "pieces" of the bloom. As usual, I would appreciate any C & C...



DSC_0044 by Soo J, on Flickr


DSC_0157 by Soo J, on Flickr



DSC_0033 by Soo J, on Flickr


DSC_0027 by Soo J, on Flickr

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Suzan,

The compositions all work for me, although in a couple I might, in PP, tone down some of the brighter peripherals bits of petal or leaves that distract attention away from the subject.

I have learned that with a macro lens, the very tiny DOF will not allow the full bloom to be entirely in focus.

When you get back, you can try focus stacking - I haven't, but it solves the DoF problem on many flower shots.

[FootLoose]

All good shots, Susan, but the 4th is my favourite. I prefer the shallow depth of field.

[jprzybyla]

I like them all, I agree with Dave on the compositions that are very interesting. They give me ideas for capturing lilies.

[Stagecoach]

Hi Suzan,

Firstly, lovely image quality and it would have been nice to see the exif data

Secondly, here's my view with respect to this kind of macro capture and DOF;

IMHO any increase in DOF with these specific images would have made them less attractive. In fact I would have preferred to see less DOF. Sorry stackers

Now my reasoning behind this contentious comment is that I believe we are stepping into the area of 'photographic art' and I see one of its primary purposes is to produce images for others to look at and appreciate perhaps in the form of hanging pictures. To me I would prefer to see images of this type with the significant part sharp but with a fair amount of mystery left.

OK, shoot me

[Suzan J]

Thanks for the feedback. Dave, I do think the backgrounds in these kinds of shots are challenging, so I will try to move the bloom indoors and experiment with other backgrounds. Unfortunately, that means some blossoms may have to be plucked while in their prime! I see there are mixed opinions on focus stacking... I also think that there is room for the shallow DOF kind of shot, depending on what one is going after. I have yet to attempt any serious focus stacking but it is a technique I would also like to learn. (Sorry, Grahame) I don't have any additional equipment such as a focus rail. I have only a tripod, so I'm not sure how to go about it. Can anyone recommend a good tutorial?

[Ken Curtis]

I have yet to attempt any serious focus stacking but it is a technique I would also like to learn. ... Can anyone recommend a good tutorial?

I wrote a brief article on focus stacking, Susan. You can download the PDF file from here
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B587...it?usp=sharing

You're images are wonderful and as others have said, you may want to keep them this way, depending upon what you like or want people to see.

You may not have to pick the flowers in their prime. Possibly using a sun shield of some kind would help the bright spots and corners.

[Shadowman]

Very nice.

[Brownbear]

#2 and #4... beautiful images... perfection