Orchid

[dvtldav]

I took this at Moody Gardens in Galveston, Tx. over Christmas. The only PP I did was add a little fill light to eliminate the shadow clipping and did a square crop which only took some off of each side. My question is do I need to lighten it more or is it ok the way it is? Any other critique is also welcome.



EXIF:
Camera: Canon 60D
Lens: Sigma 17-70 @42mm
Exposure: 1/60 sec @ f/3.5
ISO:800
Handheld w/flash.

Thanks for looking and your comments.

Dave

[loons49]

Good composition, the eye just follows the flowers through the frame! I don't think you need to lighten it at all, in fact increasing blacks and decreasing clarity as well as removing the leaves on the upper right and the stalk at the bottom could give an interesting effect of the flowers just floating on the black background; decreasing clarity will soften and give a bit of etherial effect. If you could retake it you might try a smaller aperture with a much faster shutter speed (high speed flash sync). I have had good results with this as the flash tends to only illuminate the subject leaving the background dark. Keep up the good work!

[dvtldav]

Thanks for your response. I hadn't even thought of the eye following the flowers through the frame but since you mentioned it I see where it does. I might try upping the blacks and removing the stem just to see what it looks like.

Dave