About the Image(s)

My image this month was an experiment. My daughter visited from the US and brought a Lensbaby velvet over for me - very exciting! I have had to learn how to keep sharp detail where I want it; unfortunately my first images were all softness with no details at all in focus.
Settings for this image were 1/250sec, ISO 200, centre-weighted metering. Focal length was not automatically recorded, so I now know to take notice of what I use when shooting with this lens.
It's spring here, so flowers are blooming - this image is of a clivia flower. As you can see, it is still soft throughout, but I liked it and thought it was worth processing. I cropped to a square format, and used a series of curves layers to enhance colour and contrast. I decided to try a black and white version, so used a black and white adjustment layer and a levels adjustment. I masked out some of the background that was too busy, using a black layer. Finally, I added a slight vignette using a masked curves layer.
I really like the black and white version, but have provided the colour version also for your feedback.