3 Flowers with A35-105

I have been playing around with the macro setting on the A35-105, one of the things that makes this lens so versatile and fun to use. Photos no 2+3 are of flowers from a bouquet against a garden lawn.

[IMG]http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/zz50/bjolester/Flower_1.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/zz50/bjolester/Flower_2.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/zz50/bjolester/Flower_3.jpg[/IMG]

Regards
Bjørn

Nice shots from a great lens. I decided that mine was so good that I sold the 50-135DA*. The 35-105 has exceptional image quality and is much smaller (not much lighter though... it's a tank!). It's a very cost-effective high quality zoom to buy as an alternative to the DA* if you don't mind manual focus.

Lovely colourful images, Bjorn. Seems like a very good lens.

Gareth - a couple of days ago I noticed 3 or 4 of them on EBay ranging from sensible price to EmiliaArts.... If you're keen it may be worth a look.

Jon

Andrew, Gareth and Jon: Thank you for your comments

Are there specific concepts or techniques that belong to the "style of macro photography"? Are my attempts above acceptable from a stylistic point of view?

Many regards
Bjørn

I should say the background, although blurred, is important and shouldn't be distracting. Therefore the second two of your pictures are more acceptable than the first one, in this respect.

Secondly, sharpness is, almost, everything. In this branch of photography any lack of sharpness is immediately noticeable. Of course, in anything but an extremely flat object one needs to decide what needs to be sharp.

Depth of field is also a matter for some debate. Some people revel in the tiny depth of field and deliberately shoot at wide apertures to enhance this; others stop down and get as much in focus as possible.

Thank you Andrew for a super-fast response What a great forum this is!

I will try to keep in mind the principles you mention when pursuing further attempts with macro.

Regards
Bjørn

I'm not sure everyone would necessarily agree with you at the moment, Bjorn! But things are generally very good and may improve given time.

You live in a wonderful place. We'll all look forward to some exciting shots of mountains, fjords and glaciers!

Do make sure you get other people's views on what makes a good macro shot, though. Others on the site have far more experience and take more macro shots than I. I don't even own a macro lens, jusr extension tubes!

Who would disagree Andrew?

Mike

"The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves ....."

If you would like things to improve, Andrew, the remedy is in your hands (though not yours alone!).

The forum will revert to its former glory only when people write honestly and intelligently about other people's work. At the moment, that isn't always happening.

I do appreciate your unfailing courtesy, but there is more to photographic criticism than being polite. The purpose of criticism in a forum like this is not to protect fragile egos, but to nurture whatever talents the artist may possess.

That's the proper way to build self-confidence. Not telling people their stuff is better than it is.

G

PS: From what I have seen, you are as much the victim as the perpetrator of sychophantic criticism.

PPS: Sorry to keep banging the same old drum, but the drumming will stop when the message is heard.

George I wish I had your way with words.

Mike

Looks a cracking lens. Not bad shots, I like the colours in no.3 and the simplicity of the comp. Not sure about the stalk at that angle but it's a good image.

Thank you for your constructive comment and criticism! I agree with you that photo no.3 would have been improved if the angle of the stalk had been different. I did not spend enough time on these details when taking the photos, I was focusing mostly on getting them as sharp as possible (handheld camera:lol.

Regards
Bjørn

Bjorn,

I thought I should make clear that my response to Andrew was not in any way connected to your pictures, or to his comments on them.

There is something of a campaign going on at the moment about constructive criticism, and I was somewhat irritated at Andrew's remark that "things may improve", as though others were muddying the water he wished to bathe in.

Things may indeed improve, but only when he and fellow members of the sweetness and light brigade accept the fact that telling the truth is the only fair and constructive way to criticise a picture. And if that sounds harsh, take a look at what damage has been caused by suggesting that a recently posted picture could have been taken by Ansel Adams - a grotesque fiction that Andrew blithely went along with.

Talk about building people up and then knocking them down.

I am sure that people mean well in all this, but they are sorely mistaken.

When an auditor passes judgement on the validity of a set of accounts, the test is: are the figures a true and fair reflection of reality?

The same should apply to criticism of photographs. It should be true and fair.

G

You have opted in the images to go close and isolate individual floowers, a good approach. There are a few details though that may help in improving the shots.

The first shot, and indeed the others, I find to be over-bright. In No 1 the yellow is burning out and detail is lost, plus a random light stalk in the background distracts. However, the background is darker than the subject, which is good. It projects the subject forwards to grab our attention.

No 2 and 3 reverse this and the background is too bright, giving that over-exposed bright shade of green that is a bit garish. Choosing the time and type of lighting helps here. Bright overcast days are much better than bright sunny ones. The light is more translucent and suits flower photography much better.

Composition-wise No 3 is the strondgest as No 2 has DOF problems and the flower is cut off. No 3 still suffers from being over bright but the content is there and it's well thought out.

My advice would be choose a cloudy or even rainy day, tone down the contrast and saturation to give more natural colours, always use a tripod and select the background as much as the flower itself.

Hope that helps.