First photos C&C

[cosmogramma]

snapped some flower photos (yes, MORE pictures of flowers) for the first time.

didn't edit them too much, just want some feedback.

don't like this one too much, but love the flowers.

turned out a bit brighter than I expected but doesn't have a point which draws your attention.

my favorite. gonna reshoot this and get in closer on the flower. it's a REALLY cool flower.

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

#1 Pay attention to your backgrounds. Crop off the house and your image will be 10x better.

#2 Some masses of flowers become too entwined into the background. Again, pay attention to backgrounds and how they detract or accent your subject. Sometimes your best bet is to focus on one flower, with shallow DoF, to really throw the background away, and bring focus to the flower.

I love Chives and I believe their flowers are really underated. I would like to share with you my favorite chive pics.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3608/3575171494_5a414c13e4_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3611/3546807813_d54de15e41_o.jpg

and my all time favorite: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2274/3536747281_a7554e50bb_o.jpg

#3 Bright midday sun is not the best for flower shots. Cloudy overcast days give light that is more even, and less harsh. Morning and evening sun is favorable. Here again, pay attention to backgrounds and in this case how the flowers petals compete with the mass of similarly shaped leaves. You want to set off the flower either by selective focus, or a contrasting background. This is a really cool flower, and you should take some time trying to figure out how to best present it.

 

[eriqalan]

picture 1 - crop those foreground out-of-focus flowers out; they distract from the rest

Picture 2- crop out the one out-of-focus flower at the lower right - same reason

picture 3 - crop down to include the flowers but not the useless background on both sides and the bottom

NOTE: this is how professionals shoot - you overshoot what you want and then crop down to what actually fits the subject

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

Erigalan, how long have you been a Pro?

 

[dab_20]

This is a good start. Focusing on one flower like mentioned before, or just a few, and having a shallow DOF will make your photos much better. It will draw attention to the flowers themselves.
Out of these three, I think the first is the best. Crop off some from the top so you don't see the house. Try to shoot in the evening or the early morning, as the over exposure in #2 and #3 takes away from the colors of the flowers and greenery. Practice, practice, practice!!:thumbup: