Another bloom explosion - May I have a few opinions please

[Mira]

I'm a stranger in a strange land, an amateur that landed among PROS
Which is the best shot - and why?

Thanks !

One day old blooms in the afternoon sun

[Blue_In_AK]

1. I like the first one best ...

Just because. :)

[mth44sc]

2. I'm partial to the second

just because :-)

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

3. I like the quality of the light and the

inky darkness in the first one. The second one is nice, and I would be happy with it if it were the only one... number 3, I just don't think the composition is right.

[Mira]

4. I'm happy to get some responses - my questions are sincere.

I purposely cropped the third one with lots of black because to me the light on the bloom was so intense and the black showed it, but I suspected it was too much black and wanted someone to confirm it.
Thank you !

I'm grateful to have found this part of DU, where I have hung out for four years while shooting photos of all kinds and not knowing there was photography knowledge imparted after politics.

I'll be a pain for a while, and then I'll settle in.

I also learn pretty fast.

[JeffR]

5. Two thoughts:

From a technical standpoint, the first two are near-misses because the highlights are a bit blown out.

Not so the third one, which looks to have great dynamic range with highlights well under control, but I agree with the comments above about some cropping being worthwhile. If it were mine, I'd crop it tighter on the right but leave it as is on the left. It does make a nice backdrop.

Having said that, I love the drama of the lighting and the thrill of the colors against black.

[Mira]

6. Exactly what I need to hear and examine. Thanks. You guys whose

photos I am looking at and awed with are bothering to respond. Yeah ! That's Democratic. And it thrills me.

[alfredo]

7. I like the touch of blue in the background of N# 2.

You are right about the cropping. Look at the background as an element in the image. What isn't can be as important as what is.

[Two Americas]

8. a few ideas

I think the light is a little too harsh and from too narrow a source. A little fill lighting (a hand held piece of white cardboard to reflect a little soft light at an angle would work in a pinch) and a little softer light source (hang a sheer cloth between the sun - is that sunlight through a window? - and the blossoms). That way you could bet a little more color variation in those reds and also more detail, which would increase the drama I think. Focus and depth of field are rally critical on close ups of flowers. The entire blossom does not need to be in perfect focus, but you do need to think of just where on the flower you want to focus.

On shots like this, it is "in between" that never works very well, but our natural inclination is "in between." Look at amateur snapshots - they always find that perfect "in between" spot and their shots are all boring as hell. Almost every shot would be improved by moving way in or way out. If you are shooting a face, or a blossom, move right in on it. You don't even need to get the entire object in the frame. It isn't a documentary or archive shot, after all. Also, centering the object is usually less effective and less dramatic than framing it a little off center and suggesting some moment - it is "moving" into the frame, petals first, from the left, for example. Keep moving around the blossom, and moving it relative to the light and pay attention, and you will see good shots and not so good shots.

Remember, there is something about that blossom that attracted you, that you saw in it. Have confidence in your vision. The way that you see it in your mind's eye is "right" - the only right there is. The goal is to capture on film (old timer here) what you are seeing in your mind's eye.

[Two Americas]

9. oh by the way...

Hope my post didn't seem critical. I think you are 90% of the way there to getting some dramatic shots.

[ConsAreLiars]

10. I'd second what JeffR and Two Americas have said.

The lighting is too contrasty, moderate it a bit by either method. Deep black in the background is great, but pure whites obscuring parts of the subject is distracting. On cropping #3, JeffR is right. One guideline is that you generally want the subject looking toward the focal point of the image rather than pushing it aside. In this case Flower is looking at her Bud, so Bud is the focus, but Flower is centered.