Ladybird on old hydrangea

It is the tonal quality of this composition that hits me strongly. Besides,  every object within the frame contributes to the beauty of the composition as a whole. It is sheer work of art.

While it's an interesting and well executed composition, it strikes me as a very unnatural pose for a lady bug. Having done a bit of macro work myself with ladybugs I find that they don't leap or "reach" into open space with nothing to grab hold of. I might be completely off on this but I suspect that this ladybug was inanimate and carefully placed in this position. This doesn't necessarily detract from the image, but it does seem to change my perception of it.

wow, week 1 for me in macro attempts...this is a truly inspiring image...shows the bug appearing to leap into flight...love the composition, the detail...color...really nice...take care! Ellery

All power for a great result Ellen, though I was distinctly confused visually by the jumble of soft and sharp hydrangea plant on the left and bottom. I feel that it was properly and extremely well shot but the lack of editing control lets it down. It also supports my view about people who shoot loose, it could be a much tighter shot and still be great. I don't need to see the jumble of soft and sharp plant and I don't need to see all of the 'whatever' it is standing on.

The whole picture looks very designy to me, which I like it. Aesthetically, the focused and out of focus pieces of the hydrangea look dynamic and playful just like the nature of a ladybug. It is as well playful because the dry flower is bent under the ladybugs "weight". All this elements - hydrangea, the ladybug and the flower - are magnified and thus creating a notion of lightness and joyfulness.

The whole picture looks very designy to me, which I like it. Aesthetically, the focused and out of focus pieces of the hydrangea look dynamic and playful just like the nature of a ladybug. It is as well playful because the dry flower is bent under the ladybugs "weight". All this elements - hydrangea, the ladybug and the flower - are magnified and thus creating a notion of lightness and joyfulness.

The subject elements of this picture are very nicely composed, and I especially like the quality of the light. But the background bothers me. I'm not sure if the background is a completely out of focus countryside scene, if it is a view of a foggy glade, or if it is a solid white wall which, incongruously, does not permit shadows. In any case the background seems too close, and squashes the foreground up against the camera lens, creating an extremely two-dimensional image. I would be loath to clutter the clean design with unnecessary detail, but I do think the foreground needs just a little bit more context.

Thank you all very much!

Ellen, a marvelous creation of a fantastic subject with a beautiful colors and light. Congratulations my friend.

Ellen,I like the funny equilibrium it portrays...Another step and it has to fall or to fly...
I see it as well as an acrobat a moment before walking on the rope...
So for me, it has some sort of personification.
The color pallete, light, DOF and the different forms are well composed . Congratulation Ellen.

Well done! However, I found my eye wandering around a bit. As you know, our eyes are attracted to color, light, and areas of sharpness. So, I look at the lady bug because of the red color, then at the white spot in the background, then at the in-focus portion of the plant on the left. Is this what you intended? As an alternative, it would be interesting to see what the image would have been like if everything were centered on the lady bug?

Thanks Pnina and John!
To John: I had not really an intention, I was just happy to have the ladybird a bit in focus.
It went all a bit fast and there was not much room for me to stand. So just a simple photo of a ladybird, nothing more :)

This photo is straight down amazing. i dont kno how you took it so perfectly but it is amazing. you should pat yourself on the back

Very inspiring. Congratulations!

Wonderful!!