Taken with Sigma 50mm 2.8 EX macro. AV mode f4.5 ISO 200 spot metered, on my terrace with no sunlight on it but nice bright natural light. C&C welcome, as always,
Freddy

[NaClH2O]

Well Freddy all I can say is "That is a peach of a pic!" I really like the composition with the yellow highlights of the buds in the bokeh, and the slightly oof of the partial flower in the upper right hand corner. Nice framing and great colors. Sometimes the shade is a big help in giving a nice smooth feel to the shot. Sometimes bright sunlight can be too...edgy...I'd guess I'd say.

NaCl(a nice smooth spring day)H2O

[fevbusch]

Thanks for the nice comments, H2O. Yeah, I'm happy with the composition. I did a little cropping on the left and top. But, you know, Like I think it was Yogi Berra who said "photography is 50% talent and 90% luck!".. Regards, Freddy

[egordon99]

Nice shot! It's very 3-D, I almost feel like I can reach into the screen and touch the flower :-)

I have the Sigma 105mm macro and it is a very nice lens. Looks like the 50mm is nice too!

[fevbusch]

Thanks, Gordon. Yeah that Sigma 50mm is wonderful.
I was toying with the idea of getting the Sigma 70-300 DG macro but my 50mm does everything I could ask for. Instead, I'm going for the Pentax 28-105 SMCP-FA f3.2-4.5 AL IF. That would be my zoom lens which I'm sure would be adequate for my "zoom" needs. I'm trying to find someone that wants to trade one for my kit 18-55 and my Pentax 50mm 1.7 M prime. The 1.7 is a really neat lens but I am not good at manual focusing. It's a shame to leave it in the drawer.
Any thoughts on my idea are welcome.
Regards, Freddy

[Donald]

in the past week or so your flower photographs have improved dramatically: focussed subject content, satisfying figure ground and composition.

This one probably would improve with more focused subject by cropping out the half bloom at lower right corner. Again, its to better focus attention where it should be. Also, in this case, the lower right half bloom is in same or better focus sharpness as the whole bloom. Leaving it in the crop would probably be better if it were out of depth of field as per the bloom in the background.

[fevbusch]

Thanks, Donald! I've learned just about everything I know about photography from this forum, thanks to valuable input like yours. I love my Sigma 50mm, now all I need to satisfy my lens needs is that elusive Pentax 28-105 3.2-4.5 AL IF. Its like I'm pursuing the Golden Fleece. It will turn up, I'm sure. Regards, Freddy