Flower Power - Eye Candy

This thread is an attempt to throw some beauty in the mix of all the doom and gloom realities and perspectives currently occurring. I'm not after S&F's here and I know this is a "look and see" type thread more than informative, but I stumbled upon these Bird Of Paradise Flowers that made me smile so I thought I might pass on the experience. The last 8 pics are mine that I shot here in Oregon.
Enjoy....

First the Bird Of Paradise Flowers:









Now for some others...





































This one is just crazy..

















These are some I shot here in Oregon:



















Mother Nature provides constant sources for inspiration and it is nice to be reminded of just how so.....
Makes me want to go somewhere tropical

Peace


[edit on 1-7-2010 by speculativeoptimist]

Beautiful! Its stuff like this that really makes me lean towards believing in an intelligent creator . And the fact that there are conscious beings that are able to appreciate it too , of course )

[edit on 30-6-2010 by bluemooone2]

GORGEOUS! Thank you so much for sharing a bit of the beauty that does exist in this cancer-ridden world.

I'm not quite sure how to post an actual picture, but here is a link to a flower photo I took a couple months ago. Thought I would add it to the mix!

~MoB~

Daisy

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


I think you might have some very good post production work going on there. Not a bad thing, but with photos you always need define your context before asking the opinion of others.

Looking at it you have HDR (high dynamic range) post production techniques at work. HDR is supposed to portray a picture in a way a human eye would see it. When it is done right, you question what you see, but a part of you feels comfortable with what you see.

Edit: Typo

[edit on 30-6-2010 by LarryLove]

reply to post by bluemooone2

True true, BM, divinity in design!

______________________________________________________________
reply to post by MotherofBlessings
Beautiful MoB!! Thank you!

I'm not quite sure how to post an actual picture, but here is a link to a flower photo I took a couple months ago. Thought I would add it to the mix!

~MoB~

Here ya go, hope ya don't mind me posting it...she's a beauty!

Picture by MotherofBlessings

Peace


[edit on 30-6-2010 by speculativeoptimist]

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


Of course I don't mind!! I appreciate it I'm looking forward to seeing many more in this thread.

~MoB~

Relax people, these are heavily edited photos. The colour saturations are too much. Look at the discoloration.

A photo can speak a thousand words, ten thousand when it has been edited.

reply to post by MotherofBlessings


Cancer ridden world?

Please explain?

reply to post by LarryLove


Thanks for the comment LL, not sure what ya mean here:

but with photos you always need define your context before asking the opinion of others.

I don't think I was asking opinions, just sharing. I think I did define the context...sharing beauty from our planet.

Relax people, these are heavily edited photos

Could be, but the last 8 are mine and their is no editing whatsoever.
Surely you have seen the natural radiation and brilliance when sunlight hit's such flowers. Just curious, what type of editing do think has been done? Perhaps over saturation during the shots by holding the shutter open, but I don't think that is editing.

Anyway, glad you dug em'.

Peace and respect


[edit on 30-6-2010 by speculativeoptimist]

reply to post by LarryLove


Instantly coming to mind are mass strip mining techniques, rapacious deforestation, the large wound in the Gulf of Mexico. We were charged with being good stewards of this world and the creatures therein, and I think we as a human race fail miserably at this task.

I don't think anyone is here to show photos for any reason other than to share beauty. It's just for everyone to enjoy. I am actually quite relaxed at the moment, and I think it's in part due to the heavily saturated (and lovely) photos.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


The last eight... okay, I give you the benefit of the photographic doubt! I still might question you over a couple.

However, I congratulate your post because you want to display beauty in nature and we have become remiss from that.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


I am not knocking you mate. Promise.

You ask about what editing I am talking about. Forget shutter speed. Expose for the colour tone. You have a shot of a red flower. I am guessing you are using a DSLR? If you are in bright sunlight, underexpose the shot by one stop to bring out a full redness. Your individual camera settings will have importance here. Spot or circle meter reading should do it.

reply to post by LarryLove


I wish I could do more with my camera but just have a point and shoot Sony. It's a fantastic little thing, but I can't adjust aperture or ISO. You sound like you know your way around a camera. Have any nice shots to share?

~MoB~

reply to post by LarryLove

Ahhh, I got ya!
Yes I do under/overexpose an F stop or 2 sometimes ( not these 8), especially when my tri-pod is not at the bottom of the river where I lost it!
I wish I had a DSLR, just using an Olympus SP 510 UZ for now. It was "state of the art" 3 years ago for the 500$ range with 7.5 MP, now......
Oh well, I'm content til I can save up and get a 15MP DSLR.

Peace


[edit on 30-6-2010 by speculativeoptimist]

reply to post by MotherofBlessings


Love this thread... will come back to you in a moment. Gonna reply to the OP first if that's cool?

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


You already know how to take a great photo. Try putting some black card behind colored flower for low key and white card behind 70% white tone flowers for high key.

The camera is not important, the photographer is. Think about your background to make your foreground more important.

Keep posting photos.

reply to post by MotherofBlessings


I do, but I am still learning myself. I will be happy to share some photos in time.

I am trying to make a career change - turning my photographic hobby into a career.

reply to post by MotherofBlessings


Go get a cheap film camera. You won't regret it.

You will love film!

reply to post by MotherofBlessings

Yes cheap film camera are nice, and ya can get the pics put on a disc for other reasons.
Here's a few links to getting to know your dig camera, hope it helps.

www.cambridgeincolour.com...

photo.net...

www.photoxels.com...

The "auto" mode feature is a safe bet to keep your camera in, but do a little experimenting too. I used to go out and take several shots of the same subject, changing the settings on each time and writing down what I did, then later when reviewing I can determine what I like/dislike and how it was achieved.

Peace

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


Cool, but change those dials to aperture or shutter priority setting and see what difference it makes to your photos. I will be happy to help with any questions, but on your kind of camera you should be able to swap between one or the other.