How to improve this shot?

[Leilani-m]

Since I'm amateur and a beginner, I would like to hear your suggestions how to improve this shot. I did slight adjustments: levels, selective colour to accentuate suptile cyans on their wings, small amount of sharpening.

I would like you to help me with some issues. The picture has very nice theme, but I feel like it is missing somenthing.
What do you think? Would tighter crop be better? Is there a way to emphasise more on ther "act" ? What can I do better next time, what setting woud be better? I shot in AP, with macro option. I'm not sure if this is noticeable, but these two are mating. The shot was taken around noon, and I manage to take only few shots.

If you like to see bigger version here is the link:
In love by ~leilani-m on deviantART

Canon PowerShot SX100is
f/2,8
exp 1/640
ISO-80
focal length 6 mm

[windrider86]

Thank you for posting in the critique section!
There are certain criteria that needs to be fulfilled to post in the critique section so I am including a link to the guidelines for you to read. Within them they contain all the information you'll need to fulfill the information that is needed to be included in your posts. Thanks for doing so and looking forward to seeing your edited post!
Let me know if you need help

[Leilani-m]

Thanks for warning me. I edited post and included smoe specific question. I thisnk this is nice shot, but I'm perfectionist and I think that there is always a way to make things better.

Sometimes it can led to overdone pictures, so would really appreciate any critique or comment

[Leilani-m]

Anyone? No thoughts whatsoever?

[windrider86]

The thing I noticed the most was all the empty space behind them. Macro literally means filling the frame with your subject. I might tone down the green a tad as well. Its very overpowering and is taking away from the butterflys

[LeeR]

One of the things you will hear talked about a great deal on this site is depth of field (DOF) and that plays a significant part in your image. DOF is a control that allows you to make things in the background either blurry or sharp, whichever you think will be most appropriate for your image. In this particular image, since the grass creates lines going every which way, blurry would have been best. Normally we would control DOF with the aperture setting but you have the aperture set to f2.8 which is as wide open as your lens gets. So how do you create the blurry background? I would suggest you could have zoomed in the subject, which also has the effect of shortening your DOF. Generally speaking, the more you zoom in the shorter the DOF gets and the blurrier the background gets. That being said, the same could now be accomplished in PP with a layer mask.

[J. r. Weems]

Not sure what lens you are using here, but whatever it is, a tripod might improve this excellant image-- I wish I had taken it. The other above coments of course would apply as well. I am WELL, aware you do not always have time to grab & set up a tripod, but they help, even a mono pod will help. You can get them with 3 little feet-- Next on my list as holding steady is for the younger folks. Still, a GREAT CAPTURE!! CONGRATS!!

I went back to look again, and while there IS a lot of back green, Such is chactaristic of such shots. Filling the frame would indeed help, also, Scot Kelby told me once, don't be afraid to 'go square', most all photos are displayed rectangle, going square will make some things stand out in the crowd, so to speak. JMHO

[PrimeTime]

Leil, it is easier to show you than it is to explain.

I did a re-edit on your photo so you can see the results. I added some contrast with unsharp mask, set to radius of 6 and amount of 45 and then adjusted the opacity to about 60. I then added a layer mask set to black and only brushed in the butterflies. ( in other words i only applied the contrast to the butterflies and not the background.)

I increased the vibrance on the butterflies a little more.

I decreased the saturation of the background a little.

Added a small amount of vignette to darken the background a little , focusing the light on the subject a little more.

Sharpened a little more.

Added black boarder

Cropped to 4/5



Very nice photo in my opinion. Next time, a little more depth of field would have helped. The butterfly on the right is a little soft, but not too bad.

[Leilani-m]

Thank you all for yor input. I can se what you ment. The edit looks a lot better than mine.

Sometimes I'm a bit afraid to go square, and often am afraid to brake rule of thirds.

Buying a tripod or monopod is not an option. I'm currently unemployed, living with my parents, with 2yo boy. I use my hands to stabilize camera, wooden stick (if I have a place to "stick it") and similar cheap stuff.

When I took this shot I was driving my son in a stroller across the meadow (off road and he was yelling "faster, faster", and it was almost noon.
It was quite a challenge to take a good picture consider the circumstances