I feel this shot is let down by your control over DoF - while a couple of the leaves, most notably the bottom right one, are beautifully sharp and detailed, a lot of them are fuzzy and blurred.
Of course, everything in a macro doesn't have to be in focus, like in any other type of shot, but here I don't feel you've used the OoF areas to best effect - to me the leaves just look soft due to error!
On the plus side I like the way you've stacked the leaves to create different tones and shadow effects, the overall composition is pleasing and the backdrop is effectively muted - if a little noisy. Maybe some noise reduction wouldn't go a miss here.
Just a guess - it's taken standing over the plant shooting down? This would be the reason for the large number of OoF areas - that's a very large focal plane!
Conclusion - good composition, use of colour and light, mixed with an interesting angle and effective background. Let down by use of DoF and slightly by PP effects.
Nice composition and light -- and I like the way it appears to be floating. Helen
Martin Polanic
19-May-2006 22:02
Love the masked out background here to make me zero in on the leafy textures! The red leaf is a nice touch to throw a little tilted balance and contrast into the shot. Nice work!
