My flutterbys

[janis]

Thought I should add some of my recent butterfly shots. I shot these a few weeks ago at the local butterfly conservatory.

#'s 1& 2
Not sure which of these I like better:





I was told I should clone out the white stuff, but I haven't gotten 'round to trying. My cloning skills are not great. If anyone has any tips for cloning in Aperture 3, I'm in the market.

#3


#4
If I ever get around to learning GIMP, I will add some room to the top and LH side on this one.


#5


#6


I'm still re-working a seventh, which I think is my favorite. I hope to have something to show you soon.

[mariehass]

Janis, how lucky you are! Since I am not macro conversant, I will let others offer critique. My eyes are on the butterflies themselves, which are, by the way, beautifully focused and lovely colors. You can almost see the scaling on the wings.

'Rie

[jiro]

Loved the shots, Janis.

I'd go with #2. The slight tilt makes the shot more dynamic.

#3 looks like a very good candidate for some dodging and burning.

#4 seems to be the best among the series. If you only had Photoshop CS5 or CS6, it would take you less than 10 seconds to extend the image area and fill it with content-aware and you're done.

#5 is nice. The orange peels are the giveaways that this was shot on a botanical garden. They do the same when I was in a butterfly sanctuary in San Antonio Texas many months back.

#6 doesn't seem to work for me since the focus was shifted to the flower and not to the butterfly itself.

This is what it would probably look like for image #4 when edited in Photoshop:



Keep the flutterbys coming.

[janis]

Thanks, 'Rie. I have to say I am very partial to the macro world. Maybe it comes from being small, which is to say, short.

[jeeperman]

Let me just say Fanfreakintastic! ;D

[janis]

Aug 11, 2012 1:00:33 GMT jiro said:

Loved the shots, Janis.

Thanks, Jiro

I'd go with #2. The slight tilt makes the shot more dynamic.

That was my thought, and I like the background better, too. But looking at it today, it seemed that the focus on the butterfly might be better in #1. Everything's a trade-off, eh?

#3 looks like a very good candidate for some dodging and burning.

Okay, I expect you would dodge the area in shadow, but what exactly would you burn?

If you only had Photoshop CS5 or CS6

Ah yes, if only. But I decided I would rather spend money on lenses. I gather GIMP can do that content-aware thing, though, so that is incentive to learn it.

#6 doesn't seem to work for me since the focus was shifted to the flower and not to the butterfly itself.

Yes, and I only just realized that today. This is the first time I have looked at them in several weeks and I was shocked to see how many flaws I didn't see before. Quite sobering, really.

Thanks for the critique, Jiro. Very useful.

[janis]

Aug 11, 2012 1:05:14 GMT jeeperman said:

Let me just say Fanfreakintastic! ;D

Thanks, Paul, but as I'm sure Jiro can tell you, shooting butterflies in a conservatory is like shooting fish in a barrel.

[janis]

This is that seventh pic, which I have re-edited based on criticisms from TOF. The thought was that the background was too distracting, so I increased saturation and definition on the butterfly, while decreasing saturation everywhere else. Let me know if you think it could be tweaked further.

[Stevewebb]

Beautiful Janis.

The most recent one does have a busy background but it's still a great shot. It would be a good candidate to select out the background and swap it for the green one from number 4. But that's more learning to do on Gimp ;D

[The Wirefox]

Beautiful shots Janis, you have been putting some work in whilst away from FSC. You are up there with the best of them now. I am with Jiro on the first two shots. No2 but without the yellow cast . No 4 is faultless. Really enjoyable set for me.

[Frostbyte]

I really like the sharpness, colour, and detail in the 7th image Janis. Excellent crop as well - gives folks an opportunity to 'fill in' the remaining details with their imagination. Nice!

[janis]

Thank you, Frank. Steve 1, you are merciless tease. And Steve 2, I'm on to you: you are trying to soften me up and disarm me, but you won't succeed. I am ever vigilant!

[Seri]

This is a great series, Jan

The are all very beautiful, but, unlike the others, the one I really adore is #3. Everything from the detail on his eye to the gorgeous patterns surrounding his eyespots. And the varied array of soft, muted browns and greys, with a sympathetically-coloured background too.

(I'm a great fan of warning colouration in invertebrates. A fascinating study in its own right

I wouldn't worry too much about getting rid of every white spot in the background. Just one or two of the more obvious ones, maybe, with the Aperture 3 cloning tool. Better to take more photos than get obsessive with the PP (advice I only wish I could follow myself ;D)

I only use LR3, but I can't imagine that the cloning tool in Aperture 3 can be any more difficult than that, so go to it, girl! I'll give you a hand off-list if you need it.

I agree with Wirefox. You've taken one of those artistic leaps that can sometimes happen after a period in the doldrums when we despair because we feel we're getting nowhere.

And Steve 2, I'm on to you: you are trying to soften me up and disarm me, but you won't succeed. I am ever vigilant!

I'm so proud of you for not being duped by this Roué. He has made a ruined woman of me, but it is not too late for you.

You were right. We should have run away together while we had the chance, but it is too late now

[janis]

Aug 15, 2012 6:08:06 GMT Seri said:

This is a great series, Jan

Thanks, Seri.

They are all very beautiful, but, unlike the others, the one I really adore is #3.

I like the muted colours, too. Dealing with that shadowed bit is a challenge to my processing skills, but you have encouraged me to tackle it again. I may well take you up on your offer of a hand.

I agree with Wirefox. You've taken one of those artistic leaps that can sometimes happen after a period in the doldrums when we despair because we feel we're getting nowhere.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could do away with the despairing part.

You were right. We should have run away together while we had the chance

(Dagnabit, Seri! We were going to keep that a secret from Marie!)

Sorry for coaxing her out of the comfy corner, folks. I'll try to herd her back in now.