Too much processing??

[Kris V]

I never know when it's time to stop......
The original was badly under exposed. Made this rescue attempt:

[Mike Buckley]

Definitely not too much processing; it's very nice.

But it's not yet time to stop. Try toning down the intense areas of the green leaves by darkening them, desaturating them or both. They compete a little with the flower.

[IzzieK]

Hmmm...Mike is right as usual. My eyes led me back to the leaves. I thought the colour was nicely done. Then I remembered -- it was the flower, not the leaves. The flower is nicely done all right. No need to PP that...

[JR1]

I think the leaves are just too bright, BUT that said darn darn nice

[Kris V]

Better? All I really did was add an adjustment layer and desaturated the green. It looked darker in PS than here. I wonder why? I used the same colour space....sRGB

[Mike Buckley]

It's better but I still think the bright greens are too distracting.

Not all browsers manage color equally well and that could explain why the image looks different when you're using your browser. If you're not using Firefox, I highly recommend it. If you are using Firefox, I'm stumped.

[Manfred M]

Kris - both images work for me, but the second one, with the reduced highlights on the leaves work better for me. You are treading a very fine line between trying to reduce the brightness of the leaves against the balance of the image. I think you have come very close to achieving this in the second version.

While I understand where Mike is coming from regarding the impact of the highlights, I think in this case they are required to give the lower right side of the image a bit of life. I personally would try to brighten them a bit more, to see how this works.

[Mike Buckley]

While I understand where Mike is coming from regarding the impact of the highlights, I think in this case they are required to give the lower right side of the image a bit of life.

It's the dynamic range and abrupt change of tonalities within the leaves that bothers me, not that the highlights are bright. In my mind, either the dark areas of the leaves need to be brightened to more closely blend with the highlights or the highlights need to be darkened to more closely blend with the shadow tones. Brightening the dark areas of the leaves would bring that area more to life as Manfred suggests.

Notice that the flower's tones change gradually, unlike the leaves' tones. I believe the leaves will always compete with the flower unless their tones are more like the flower's tones in that regard.

[chauncey]

All I really did was add an adjustment layer and desaturated the green

In addition to the greens, desaturate the yellows a little...perhaps on it's own layer.

[Manfred M]

It's the dynamic range and abrupt change of tonalities within the leaves that bothers me, not that the highlights are bright. In my mind, either the dark areas of the leaves need to be brightened to more closely blend with the highlights or the highlights need to be darkened to more closely blend with the shadow tones. Brightening the dark areas of the leaves would bring that area more to life as Manfred suggests.

Notice that the flower's tones change gradually, unlike the leaves' tones. I believe the leaves will always compete with the flower unless their tones are more like the flower's tones in that regard.

Mike - I understand where you are coming from. but I find that the image works for me. The rose petals are a large "bright" area and something bright is required to balance out the dark leaves. I find that the leaves overpower the flower in the first edit, but need a bit more punch in the second one.

[Shadowman]

Stop when the image starts to look processed.
Nicely done.

[Kris V]

It's better but I still think the bright greens are too distracting.

Not all browsers manage color equally well and that could explain why the image looks different when you're using your browser. If you're not using Firefox, I highly recommend it. If you are using Firefox, I'm stumped.

I'm mostly using Google chrome, but I do have FF installed also.

[Mike Buckley]

I'm mostly using Google chrome

A long time ago, I posted a photo that included a shadow on a very dark tabletop. Dave (one of our moderators) couldn't see the shadow using Google Chrome. Neither he nor I could see it using Internet Explorer. Both of us could easily see it using Firefox. That's one reason I always recommend Firefox.

[bnnrcn]

I like #2 Kris, very nice image

[Lon Howard]

A very thought provoking thread here because as I go through it, with each succeeding post that differs from the prior one, I find myself saying, "good point." In the end though I guess I have to come down somewhere and in this case I'm mostly in Manfred's camp. Even though we (apparently) initially misunderstood Mike's point about the leaves, desaturating them provided the balance that I liked, and I was no longer distracted by them and as Manfred said, it does give that area some life. I guess you could crop the leaves out altogether and make it a vertical, but that doesn't work for me either. I like Kris' revision - nice job!