The Gathering

I am not thrilled with the DOF of this image but I guess the novelty for me of

seeing sunflowers up close convinces me it is worthy of posting. (I can be

delusional.) Comments and critique are welcome.

Wayne,

  Beautiful image with wonderful colors & details.  Take care, Patsy

wayne,  i see you have the approval from the queen of the sunflowers,  that in itself says something.  colors here are much richer than in other similar image.  clarity is also better,  without trying to sound picky,  think it could still be a wee bit sharper.  i hate to even suggest a tripod,  as for me creativity just goes out the door when i even think of one,  but here may be a case for using one. black border also works well.  nice work.

Thanks, Patsy and Roger,

My typical problem is managing depth of field.  I want to get in too close for my lens.  I'm usually in lighting conditions that make me shoot wide open (F-Stop).  And you're right, Roger, my creativity goes out the window when I pull out the old tripod.   Oh well, back to the ladder and tripod, ha, ha.  (I have another version of this where I used a sharpening tools that helped a little.)

like♥♥♥

Beautiful work with very nice lighting and details, Wayne!

Pekka, 

Kittos for visiting and comment.  

Ruud,

Thanks.

While this image is not as sharp Wayne it is still very nice. I liked the upturned angle of the capture. There are so many uses also for this capture. It could be used at a lower Opacity in a layer, or even a lower Opacity printed on a piece of Vellum if you were using it in a 'card' for a 'special someone'. Sunflowers are so 'welcomed' in Get Well, and Birthday Cards. I hope you enjoyed your trip to Italy! I'd love to go back someday! Cheers for now, Gail

Thanks, Gail.  Good info.  So maybe I won't trash this.

Wayne, thanks for stopping by.

I like it the way it is. If you want more DOF then you definitely need a tripod and then use the focus stack technique where you adjust the focus for each of about 5 images in this case and then blend them in the computer. The other way would be to position yourself where the lens is equidistant to the central position but you lose this very nice perspective.

Here at PN I saw an extreme macro of a small beetle and everything was perfectly in focus. The photographer revealed that it was taken in a lab and he shot 176 images to achieve that type of perfect DOF. While the result was excellent, it loses anything that might be considered artistic which is what this image has.

All the very best,

Thanks, Tony.  DOF is not often my goal, but occasionally the art demands it.  Have experimented some with focus stacking.  As you suggest, artistry is often more in the bokeh (that balance, that degree to which things are in or out of focus.)   I am most appreciative, Tony, that you educate as well as share your amazing art.