Dogwood

[RodneyBlair]

I have a couple shadows that bother me on this one so I'll have to shoot it again. :-)

[JimC]

Rodney, I see some shadows (for example, the shadow being cast in the center of the flower).

But, I'm not sure they detract from the image. I think the shadow in the middle adds depth to the image.

As for the shadows towards the outside edges on a couple of the petals, I'm not sure that they hurt anything (and may actually help the image).

I guess if you're looking for consistency between shadows, the ones onthe ends of two of the petals seems a little sharper edged and opposite from each other. If you try to analyze it, you may think they're atiny bit out of place. Even then, I don't think it detracts from the image, though.

Heck, I'm looking closely just to try and figure out if they're shadows or not, because of their opposite and odd shapes (wondering if they're just part of the flower petal colorings). ;-)

In any event, from my perspective some shadowsgive more contrast so that you appreciate the other portions of the image more, and it gives them a feeling of depth. As for the smoothness of the transition to shadows, I think that's a matter of personal taste (provided they don't detract from the image).

Now, I'd personally add atiny bitmore pop to it (but that could just be me). How about this:

[RodneyBlair]

Hi Jim,

You've followed my work for a while now and are probably aware that I like highlights with lots of presence. It's usually these highlights that give images the POP you mention. I didn't pull it off, but I was trying to make the lighting a noticeable element here.

Your edit does give it more pop. Thanks for taking time to work with it and offer a different artistic rendering.

Rodney