Plant shot ...

[ArghMonkey]

Not sure if I should have put this in composition but im wondering about any tips for making this shot better ...

I like the detail in that one leaf (?) but im conflicted about the rest, I could have put the cam on f22 but that would have flattened the whole thing out, I dunno, not sure what I could have done to make this better, its one of those shots I thought would look good but im not really happy with it ...

Should I have put this in critique?



http://www.flickr.com/photos/arghmonkey/2303901548/

[peeperita]

beautiful texture on that one leaf that you seem to be so pleased with......

i think some of your issues lie in that you have an out of focus leaf in the forground.......you might have widenened your depth of field to include it....but, you said that you didn't want to "flatten" your image......the only other suggestion i have is to have framed it so that the unfocused element was out of the image....

thanks for sharing

peeper

[RexK_Cozumel]

What peeper said and the chain in the background seems out of place and is distracting as well.

[ArghMonkey]

I guess your right, I was hoping to be able to draw attention to just one small area but flattening the picture out is probably the way to go ...

Thanks for the tips ...

[jiminyClickit]

ArghMonkey,

A plant is not quite like a flower in that it's all subject, no one distinct part stands out. Your photo is not a Macro, nor is it a full portrait of the plant, either one of which might give a better result in overall presentation. A dark background would help, a backlit Macro also a possibility for emphasizing the veins and wonderful color.

[ArghMonkey]

At what point is a picture a macro anyway? Is there a rule of thumb?

Thanks for the ideas ...

[jiminyClickit]

ArghMonkey,

The DPS Blog had a fair article about P&S Macro, not so much help for you. Some suggestions fit Olympus DSLR's too, and generally speaking, a Macro is equivalent to or larger than a 1:1 ratio on your sensor, as if the sensor were a Xerox and you placed your subject on it and made a copy. So a true Macro can be a frame-filling magnification, still not certain there is a definitive answer, with measurements and all.

http://digital-photography-school.co...sers/#more-204

Point and Shoot can do a good Macro, too:

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1242/...a0672183_b.jpg

[KodiakStar]

Personally, I would have shifted a bit to get that chain out of the background, and used my hand, pencil to hold back the leaves that are blurred in the foreground, or have something to tie them back with while taking a picture of the other leaf.

I personally think the background (minus chain) is fine, and offsets the color of the plant well, but I am colorblind so take that with a grain of salt..