Guy Davies, EPSA  

Garden Iris Close-Up 2A by Guy Davies, EPSA

July 2024 - Garden Iris Close-Up 2A

About the Image(s)

I am currently trying to get fit again after hurting my back last year, but it is taking a very long time and I still have significantly reduced mobility. I have not even been able carry my Lumix G9 with its set of lenses so I decided to buy a Lumix FZ1000 which is an all in one camera with a built-in wide range zoom covering the full frame equivalent of 25 - 400 mm focal length. (The actual focal length range is 9.1 - 146 mm). When I got home I was keen to try it out so I ventured out of my comfort zone and photographed some flowers in my back garden (ie back yard). I tried out several aperture and ISO settings and decided this one was quite nice. Hand held, the exposure was 1/3200 sec at f/4 with ISO 3200 and a focal length of 146 mm (400 equiv). I took it into ON1 RAW to darken the background and to brighten the flower and add some vibrance. I also used the NoNoise AI function which seems to improve the sharpness as well as minimising noise. Then I cropped and rotated the image to make the flower lean a little from bottom right to top left.

Congratulations to Isaac on his award of APSA.

This round’s discussion is now closed!
9 comments posted

Dr Isaac Vaisman   Dr Isaac Vaisman
Guy, thank you !! and before anything, I hope you get full recovery ASAP. This is a lovely Iris, and well PP. Very sharp and good non distracting background. I did reduce the brightness and added a touch of texture and now we see a lot more detail in the flower.   Posted: 07/08/2024 13:22:22
Comment Image
Guy Davies   Guy Davies
Thanks Isaac. I didn't think about adding texture.   Posted: 07/08/2024 14:16:59
Bill Buchanan   Bill Buchanan
I hope your recovery goes quick and easy. A couple of years ago I judged a PSA portfolio of iris flowers. They were all shot using focus stacking and had incredible results. You have done well with your new camera. I like Issac's suggestion of reducing the brightness. Have you considered using Topaz Photo AI? It does incredible things on images such as sharpening and noise reduction.   Posted: 07/08/2024 14:48:46
Guy Davies   Guy Davies
Bill, I hve Topaz DeNoise AI but not Photo AI. Normally I use ON1 RAW which has very good NoNoise AI and Sharpen AI functions.   Posted: 07/08/2024 16:07:09
R Gary Butler   R Gary Butler
Guy, I really like the complementary colors in the Picture as well as the shallow depth of field, which makes the flower stand out against the soft background. Both very good strengths in my opinion. Looking closely at the pedals, for my taste, I would sharpen some more. I know that you use ON1 so I would suggest perhaps boosting the dynamic contrast of just the flower petals. To my eye, this would bring out the edges of each pedal as well as some of the striations within each. Thanks for sharing.   Posted: 07/09/2024 17:55:52
Guy Davies   Guy Davies
Thanks Gary. I'll take a look at selective dynamic contrast.   Posted: 07/10/2024 12:55:00
Guy Davies   Guy Davies
Gary, I just tried dynamic contrast and it just gives that extra pop. Thanks for the suggestion.   Posted: 07/16/2024 09:02:45
Vella Kendall   Vella Kendall
Being in pain is no fun and frustrating so I wish that you get better.

A beautiful flower and agree with the darker background and the more detailed flower. I love the blue and yellow but I would clone out the (what I think) the dead part on the left and right side. You must have a beautiful garden.

Thanks for letting us know about Issac's award.   Posted: 07/12/2024 00:06:00
Erik Rosengren   Erik Rosengren
I applaud your grit in moving forward while dealing with painful back issues. It seems that your new lighter camera is fitting the bill. You need to get better soon as there are more images to make. That said, a nice Iris, sharp and well placed on your canvas Isaacs input strengthened your entry.   Posted: 07/16/2024 00:48:01