# A Walk Through My Garden



## sojourn (Mar 26, 2010)

I didn't go anywhere today but in my garden, which is just waking up from a cold, cold winter. Happy Spring to all!!

1. My first crystal tulip to bloom. Look at those frosty edges:









2. The first bloom on my dianthus 'Firewitch' patch stands amidst the waiting buds leaning over the gravel path:







3. I love miniature dwarf bearded iris, they do well in my rockeries. This lemon-pie colored one is one of my favorites. It is around 6" tall.







4. And what garden set would be complete without a bee closeup on Euphorbia characias' green on green flowers:


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## Dominantly (Mar 26, 2010)

Nice bee shot.
I would just like to put out there that it might benefit from some desaturation of the yellows. Then again, it could be spot on and best as is 

For the first shot, I see you have some shadows in the background. I find that if you are shooting a flower that is being painted by sunlight, you can make the shot even more dramatic if you position yourself to place a dark/shadow area behind it. If pulls the flower away from any bright backgrounds that may compete for tones.


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## sojourn (Mar 26, 2010)

Dominantly said:


> Nice bee shot.
> I would just like to put out there that it might benefit from some desaturation of the yellows. Then again, it could be spot on and best as is
> 
> For the first shot, I see you have some shadows in the background. I find that if you are shooting a flower that is being painted by sunlight, you can make the shot even more dramatic if you position yourself to place a dark/shadow area behind it. If pulls the flower away from any bright backgrounds that may compete for tones.


 
Dominantly, many thanks for your input! I see what you mean about the yellow saturation. While I didn't bump the saturation at all on that image, it might have been good to _desaturate_ it just a bit. That plant has very strongly chartreuse-colored bracts and with the tiny yellow flowers inside it does scream *YELLOW!* a bit.

You know, I could have moved just a bit and had that whole tulip flower in a darker, shady bokeh...I am learning though! I take more time to consider the background than I ever did before. I can't wait for the other colors of this fascinating type of tulip to bloom. This variety is new to me.

Here's a red tulip I tried to get with a bit of backlight to capture the translucent quality of the satiny petals. It came out fairly well, I think:


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## Dominantly (Mar 26, 2010)

That did come out very nice.

This is a shot I took some time composing, getting all the shadows and highlights lined up.
Once you start seeing how everything comes together, you find yourself spending quite some time walking around and staring at flowers from different angles 
http://dominantly.smugmug.com/Projects/Project-365/flower3-38/785699175_m8Qv7-L.jpg


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## sojourn (Mar 27, 2010)

Dominantly said:


> That did come out very nice.
> 
> This is a shot I took some time composing, getting all the shadows and highlights lined up.
> Once you start seeing how everything comes together, you find yourself spending quite some time walking around and staring at flowers from different angles
> http://dominantly.smugmug.com/Projects/Project-365/flower3-38/785699175_m8Qv7-L.jpg


 
Very nice! you've explained yourself perfectly with that picture!

Yes, I already do take a lot of time to walk around and stare at flowers, and I do a lot of sitting on the ground, sometimes laying down and squatting down low...it's good for the leg muscles <groan> And just about the time I get the perfect balance and focus, my viewfinder will fill with cat fur, the wind will blow the subject around or a dog nose will bump my arm!


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## mommy22 (Mar 27, 2010)

Love the bee shot!!! The others are nice as well. I also like the way you did the red tulip. I am a garden/flower junkie as well...

Quick random question: How do you like your Sigma 18-200? I am thinking of selling my kit 18-55 and my 70-300 to get a 18-200...


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## Ron Evers (Mar 27, 2010)

The bee shot is nice but too centered.


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## sojourn (Mar 27, 2010)

mommy22 said:


> Love the bee shot!!! The others are nice as well. I also like the way you did the red tulip. I am a garden/flower junkie as well...
> 
> Quick random question: How do you like your Sigma 18-200? I am thinking of selling my kit 18-55 and my 70-300 to get a 18-200...


 
mommy22, I am very pleased with my lens. As I don't have much experience with other lenses I am not able to make an informed comparison against any other glass---but it certainly does the job for me.


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## thissilentstar (Mar 27, 2010)

Wow!


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## sojourn (Mar 27, 2010)

Ron Evers said:


> The bee shot is nice but too centered.


 
Arrggh, I am going to have to rewire my brain for this 'rule of thirds', while I think that that ROT is pleasing, I like centered things, too.

OK, here is the bee, desaturated, yellow removed a tad, cropped up some because the bee is in good focus and a bit of cloning:


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## reznap (Mar 27, 2010)

^ Nice edit sojourn.  I like how detailed everything is on that little guy, wings and all.  

I think #1's very beautiful too.  Nice garden you have there.


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