Jay Joseph
January 2022 - Milkweed Seed
Original
About the Image(s)
This photograph “Milkweed Seed” was taken at a park near my house. I used a few of the new features in Lightroom to help select the subject and background, making it easier to process. It was taken with a macro lens, so I was able to do a large amount of cropping and retain sharpness. I converted the image to black and white because there was not much color in the shot, And I liked the look. I flipped it vertically because I liked it better from that view.
Pentax K-1, ISO 100, f3.5, 100mm macro, 1/100 sec.
This round’s discussion is now closed!
11 comments posted
Superb, it looks like a dancer in full performance.
The direction of reading seems to me very good, because we follow the stem and that brings the glance on this wonder of the nature.
I like the black and white treatment. I wonder if Nik Collection couldn't have given a little sparkle to the color photo?
But you wanted it that way and I love it. Thank you and happy new year to you. Posted: 01/10/2022 17:36:49
The direction of reading seems to me very good, because we follow the stem and that brings the glance on this wonder of the nature.
I like the black and white treatment. I wonder if Nik Collection couldn't have given a little sparkle to the color photo?
But you wanted it that way and I love it. Thank you and happy new year to you. Posted: 01/10/2022 17:36:49
Thank you for your comments Sophie. Posted: 01/22/2022 20:13:36
Jay, what a simply superb image. Your thought processes have resulted in an extraordinary image. Great composition and capture. Cropping, flipping and processing have all worked supremely well. The sharpness, toning and dof are all spot on, in my humble opinion. Some people may say they would like to see more of it sharp and in focus with a larger doh, but I would ask if that would make it busier and possibly a more confusing image. Congratulations on a fantastic image Jay. Posted: 01/16/2022 04:33:32
Thank you for your comments Ian. It would have (and should have) been a sharper photo if I would have been closer to the plant when I took the photo. When I took the picture, I wasn't thinking about zooming in to one flower, but I should have been. Always learning with each photo shoot. Posted: 01/22/2022 20:19:27
Beautiful rendition of the Milkweed Seed. The smoothness of the Milkweed reminds me of silk threads. I think it would be distracting if you had everything in focus as there is just enough in sharp focus in the foreground. B/W conversion was a good choice as well as well as cropping the image to show us this part of the Milkweed. Good choices all around in your post processing, Jay. Posted: 01/18/2022 18:55:13
Thanks for your comments Henriette. Posted: 01/22/2022 20:20:04
Jay, I love taking photos of milkweed. There's so much you can do with the pods and the seeds and silk, etc. I think you achieved what you set out to do and I agree with your choice of flipping the image and your b&w treatment. IMHO I think the silk has to be whiter (as attached) to bring more tonal contrast to the black-and-white image. Posted: 01/23/2022 19:02:29
Thanks for the input, and your rendition of the photo Trey. Posted: 01/25/2022 21:19:36
Very nice job Jay. I love monochrome images and the trick is knowing which ones work best as monochrome. This was a good choice. I do agree with Trey. In needs just a bit more tonal contrast. You might be able to simply dodge in a bit of highlights to the silky milkweed where it shows the brightest in the original image. Darkening the background just a bit might help create the stronger tonal contrast as well. You have great vision for this image and the subject matter and composition is great. Well done. Posted: 01/26/2022 17:12:02
Thanks for your comments and suggestions Heidi. The light painting class I am taking is from Kelby. I didn't know PSA had one. I will check into it. Thanks. Posted: 01/30/2022 08:35:18
Yes, check into the PSA class. It is all small scale studio work similar to mine and he covers it over several months with 'personal' critiques and instruction. It looks like the Kelby class is a bit broader - with portraits and outdoor large objects. Both would be fun! Good Luck. Posted: 01/30/2022 09:33:26