Stargazer Lily

[ajsmith]

Hello Everyone,

I haven't posted in a while. Like some others here, have been busy, but have been viewing all the other wonderful posts.

I took a few photos tonight of a Stargazer lily. The photos were taken in my back yard as the sun was setting.
Used Adobe Camera Raw in Photoshop Elements to process the files and applied a slight crop. Do you think I should crop number 1 tighter? Do you like the composition of 2? Does the white border add anything to the photo or cause distraction?

I used a Canon 18-55mm lens. Hand held the camera... no time for tripod.
Best viewed at the larger size.

C and C welcome.

Stargazer Lily 1
SS: 320, F7.1, ISO: 400, 51mm


Stargazer Lily 2
ss: 320, F16, ISO 400, 55mm

[FrankMi]

Good to see you posting again Ali! The crop on #1 is close enough for me but I would remove the green stalks above the blossom.

For my taste, #2 is the stronger composition and more interesting of the two. I would have included the fork in the stalk and just a bit more at the bottom to better complete the image and also to move the blossom just a tad higher in the frame.

Great job!

[Shadowman]

Very nice images.

[bnnrcn]

Hi Ali I like both of them. I agree with Frank about removing the green stalks above the blossom.

PS I like the frame, may be a little thinner would be better.

[DanK]

The second is a great image--a very interesting composition, and excellent use of the end-of-day lighting. The white frame does nothing for me.

[deetheturk]

Very nice Ali!

[ajsmith]

Thanks for your comments everyone. Here is the new and improved #1 with the green stems removed.

[bnnrcn]

Much better

[FrankMi]

Lovely! Great emphasis on the subject this way!

[nikon66]

Beautiful and wonderful shots.

[vaez]

nice capture