Blue Glory

I really like the beautiful subject, Nathan, and your basic comp, including using the lighter blue sky as the bg. Very beautiful and an excellent comp. Overall, I like this a lot. The one nit I have is the buds (ok, I guess maybe that's two nits). Both are at an awkward angle, with one in front of the blossom. I'd try to find either a separate blossom or one where the buds complement the blooming MG. Also, I'd try to get the entire stem in focus, if possible, but now I'm just being plain picky.

Nathan - Tastefully done. Love the perspective against the sky. I tried my best this season but every time I wanted to shoot something like this, wind was against me.

Thanks Scott and Ram. I had to be patient and push up the ISO a bit to get a sharp one.

Scott: I should have been more specific. I was actually wondering if the bud was a shot killer. If this was my bloom, I may have done some pruning. Some things kept me from doing that...1) Mainly that the bloom was at the Thanksgiving Point Gardens. 2) The bloom was too high up for me to prune it - even if I could have.

Thanks again.

Nathan

Nathan, honestly I like the photo. It is a classic but very well fulfilled blue on blue..
Just an attempt very personal: lower contrast, more light and 2 pixels softness for a more pictorial look. Only for experimenting.
I am just preparing a Morning Glory portraits for posting!
Cheers.

Nathan, I don't feel the bud is a deal breaker. But, I would have tried to avoid it too. I think you made the best of the circumstances. The blue on blue works very well and it is a very nice image as is.

Sanjay

Nathan: The bud has no significant negative impact for me. The main subject carries the day nicely.>=))>

Having approached this from the second post, I agree with the thoughts expressed re the bud. An awkward position makes it a hindrance rather than a help.

Nice complementary colors, Nathan. I really like the angle in this image. The bud is only mildly intrusive as the main flower grabs the attention. I think the image would work better with the bottom part of the stem in focus and reducing the brightness a bit.