Badgrandad
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Contest Finalist in Depth In Nature Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Spring Photo Contest 2017
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Contest Finalist in Water Drops On Flowers Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Just Flowers Photo Contest
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Kim-mareeJenke
April 18, 2016
Join the conversation. Add a comment or even better, a critique. Let's get better together!
Kim-mareeJenke
April 18, 2016
Sorry Badgrandad.....I meant to give you a better than a peer award but moved the mouse too quick :-) .....Absolutely love this...the colours, Dof and composition are a pure delight!! Ps: Love the name too lol
catherinethompson
June 05, 2017
Beautiful. Love the colours in this one. Flowers are a favouite subject of mine. They sit still. LOL
Littlemissphotos
August 24, 2017
Beautiful, Just inspires me to go back into my garden and photography flora
Badgrandad
August 26, 2017
Hi Bethany, many thanks for your very kind comment. I noticed a strong Liverpool theme in your portfolio, if you live locally I am sure you could find a photo club to join which is a good way to find help and improve your photography, worked for me. Cheers, Rod
Katnott
September 25, 2017
Love this picture ... so detailed yet so simple. thanks for all the likes/awards
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
The photo's i.e. the image is a stack, were taken in our rear garden.Time
It was early morning in the at about 08.30 in July after a clear night which gave some very nice dew drops on the flora in the garden. Being early in the morning it was also very calm on this occasion, which allowed to take several images for stacking. Often in the morning before the sun has had a chance to really get going, it is often calmer.Lighting
The lighting was natural and early in the morning so the sun was low in the sky and from the side, perfect lighting really as there was no direct harsh light but, light enough to illuminate and cast some subtle shadows to give depth and form.Equipment
I used my manfrotto tripod, 0555XPROB and manfrotto head 468MGRC2, cable release and my trusty sigma 70mm f2.8 macro lens at f4.0 and ISO 160 to give a shutter speed of 1/500 sec, and focussed manually.Inspiration
It was a still morning, good light and dew on the garden. At this time of year the flowers were in full bloom and the wonderful contrast of this lilac perennial wallflower against the vibrant yellows in the background with dew and wonderful lighting was too good to resist, especially as the air was still, perfect conditions.Editing
This was a stack of several images. I started in LR vs. 5 and performed lens correction and then basic exposure tweaking to suit in the develop module, next select all the images whilst pressing control to use in the stack and then sync the settings from the processed image to all the other images. Next the stack was processed in Zerene Stacker and saved as an output file, which LR automatically stacks with the original images (if not right click on folder and select synchronise). I then exported to PS and used the Nik software plugins in the order of Define, raw pre-sharpener (brush mode) and Colour Effects pro, where I usually use Tonal contrast, pro contrast and darken/lighten centre (subtly). return to Ps and remove any blemishes and I usually sharpen with High pass sharpening by pressing control J to create duplicate layer, next control/shift U to covert to mono, apply appropriate amount of radius (usually 1.5 to 3.0) and chose between overlay or soft for the blending mode to suit. Then save as, to ensure you are making a copy and not affecting the original, as a matter of habit.In my camera bag
My camera then was the Samsung GX10 and I was and still am, using the sigma 70mm macro lens. I mostly photographed either handheld or with a monopod the Gitzo GM2561T which is their lightest weight monopod. perhaps when I can afford it I will upgrade the monopod as it is a very useful bit of equipment and the sturdier the better. I do not use flash at all, so in challenging lighting conditions, technique is everything. Another bit of equipment I like is an eyecup, the type you can press your face into, this has 2 benefits, 1) it prevents extraneous light from entering the viewer and 2) it helps to absorb vibration perhaps 0.5 of a stop worth when pressed to your face. I also had the tripod and head mentioned above. my other go to,lenses at the time were my sigma 18-50mm EX DG macro and sigma 12-24 wide angle lenses.Feedback
Get up early to check out your garden and weather conditions, if you have to travel check the weather the night before to try and avoid disappointment also use The Photographers Ephemeris to check the position and inclination of the sun and moon at any time of year for any place worldwide, a wonderful bit of software. early mornings tend to be still and if clear give good light for these types of image which is also low in the sky so not harsh or direct and if possible try to have the sun at right angles to reveal form in your subject, which is also good if you wish to use a polariser. For stacking you can use a wider f-stop e.g. f4, to give sharp shots and nicely diffused backgrounds. Use a remote release cable to avoid creating vibrations and use mirror lock up for the same reason. Another bonus of using a wide f-stop is that you increase the shutter speed, which helps to alleviate any movement or vibration that might occur.