Sunshine Tulip

[joshhed]

I took this shot of a tulip on a very sunny day in May. In an attempt to avoid harsh shadows, I used the sun to backlight this flower.

All comments are welcomed and appreciated.

Thanks!



Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ30, Nikon 4T close-up lens
1/1300s f/4.0 at 20.1mm iso80

[subrataofkris]

The backlight is quite stunning and the position of the flower creates an instant interest. The composition creates a strong impression in my mind. I looked at it yesterday and again today and was waiting to read any feedback from the people who specialize in macro photography, which I am not.
I wonder if you have the same type of shot in a portrait orientation. There is a bit of OOF areas in lower part of the petals and the stalk, these seem to take a bit of sheen from the shot. What is the blurry halo in the left of the flower, is it some sort of chromatic aberration of the close-up lens?

[joshhed]

Originally Posted by subrataofkris

The backlight is quite stunning and the position of the flower creates an instant interest. The composition creates a strong impression in my mind. I looked at it yesterday and again today and was waiting to read any feedback from the people who specialize in macro photography, which I am not.
I wonder if you have the same type of shot in a portrait orientation. There is a bit of OOF areas in lower part of the petals and the stalk, these seem to take a bit of sheen from the shot. What is the blurry halo in the left of the flower, is it some sort of chromatic aberration of the close-up lens?

Thanks for the comments. I'm not sure what caused that "halo" in the left of the flower but I noticed that it became more and more visible as I increased the saturation.

[windrider86]

Do you have a specific critique question?

[joshhed]

Originally Posted by windrider86

Do you have a specific critique question?

Well, I'd like to know what people think of the coposition, color saturation, sharpness, etc...

[Angel]

Very nice shot, love the angle you took!

[peeperita]

you did a good job working with the sun......the colors of the flower and the sky are bright without being oversaturated......and i am impressed that you managed not to clip the reds.....the angle and perspective are wonderful and give the impression that your bloom is reaching for the sun.....

i do feel, though, that your aperture should have been a little tighter so that more of your subject is in focus.....

lovely shot...

peeper

[Korkalot]

Originally Posted by peeperita

i do feel, though, that your aperture should have been a little tighter so that more of your subject is in focus.....

Agreed. I think there is a low of overexposure on the petal down to the right as well.

I think the colors/saturation are good as they are on the flower and the slight gradation of the blue sky from the lower left-hand corner to the upper right works well too.

Something about the composition seems off, but the different ways I have thought of that it could have been rotated just seem to make it worse, so I guess this composition works best. Great shot!

[joshhed]

Thanks for all of the comments. They are very helpful.