Close-Up Flowers - C&C

[ecaps]

All,

I got my first "real" camera Lumix FZ8 and have been attempting to take some decent pix. I'm a total newbie so........

These are just some flowers my wife has planted in our front yard barrel. Editing was done in SilkyPix & GIMP.

Looking from some critique & what not on this image.

Specs: F/3.2, 1/40sec shutter speed, ISO200.

[Ads]

[tirediron]

Very nicely done. The only comment I have to offer is that the two foreground leaves, lower-right are a bit distracting due to their soft focus, but other than that, like the composition, and execution of this image.

[Iron Flatline]

Yeah, the leaves are slightly soft. That's a creative choice, though I would also prefer them in focus. You would need a tighter aperture, a longer exposure time or higher ISO, and possibly a tripod to nail it.

Good shot, nice colors, the black frames work well, too. You have a good eye.

[Turnerea]

I too find the leaves in the bottom right a bit distracting, but also the flower in the bottom left. I look at it and expect it to be as sharp as the main 2, and it's just outside the part in focus. I like the shot overall though- water on the flowers looks very cool.

How did you do that frame? I like the black frame as well, but I also really like how it fades into the frame. Is that a feature on GIMP?