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Sunny summer
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Sunny summer

by Yun Gao

Gallery: Macro & Close-upPosted February 23, 20172,321 views8 comments

A sunny image for winter. I did some researches on the ID. My guess is this may be a female orange tip butterfly. Only the males have the orange tips. 
D90, 105 mm, f/9, 1/400, ISO 250, 80% of original frame. Beijing, September 2016.
All comments are welcome and appreciated.

Comments

8 comments
Comment posted by scott lanz on February 23, 2017 at 9:57 PM
Outstanding, Yun. Excellent subject detail, lovely perch, terrific bg. Only nit is the blown top wing, but that's very minor. I assume you've tried selctively darkeing that wing? Top notch regardless. devil
Registered on November 14, 2003, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments
Comment posted by Bill Fach on February 24, 2017 at 9:26 AM
Yun: Great perch and BG to show off this little beauty. On my monitor the wing doesn't look blown although close. A real keeper for sure.>=))>
Registered on November 1, 2003, 1805 Posts, 26981 Comments
Comment posted by Wayne Jones on February 24, 2017 at 12:29 PM
Nice colorful scene with blurred background to highlight the brilliance of this butterfly.

I see there is disagreement about "blown" highlights.  That is to be expected with differences in monitors.  On the technical side, the histogram shows there is no clipping of highlights, but the brightest parts of the wings can look that way on a bright monitor, due to the fact that that there is little contrast between then backlit white parts of the wings and the veins there.  The problem is that the veins do not show up dark enough.  (The lightest part of those wings are actually not as bright as the sunlit flowers, opposite wings, or hair on the thorax.)  I would guess that this is an accurate presentation of what you saw, when viewed on some monitors -- mine is calibrated with X-rite equipment and software, which tends to look less contrasty than monitors calibrated with Spyder systems.  To make matters worse, viewing sRGB images on wide-gamut monitors can introduce even more differences, depending on how they are calibrated.  This would make a fine print, but due to the prevalence of brighter monitors for viewing on the Web, you may want to darken the backlit veins, (but not the white parts of the backlit wings, which should remain bright) to enhance contrast there.  That can be done with a small dip in the tone curve at the appropriate spot on the curve, while "pinning down" the surrounding parts of the curve.  Plug-ins like Topaz Clarity and the Free Nik Viveza can make that job easier and produce excellent results, too. 

 Making some photos look good on all monitors is hopeless, but many viewers don't care.   Many, many monitors are not calibrated, and come from the factory way too bright for critical photo viewing, although they are good for video games. 
Registered on April 18, 2007, 953 Posts, 6435 Comments
Comment posted by Yun Gao on February 24, 2017 at 10:03 PM

Thanks for the comments.
Scott, yes, I did selectively darken the bright part of the top wing. Good eye to spot this. enlightened
Wayne, thank you for your detailed review and explanations about the veins and monitors. I understand better now why the wings of this species (and Cabbage White) are never very sharp.

Registered on September 11, 2012, 267 Posts, 1621 Comments
Comment posted by Mark Seaver on February 25, 2017 at 9:45 AM
Yes, Yun, a fine summery view.  Your comp. works well with good sharpness on both the bf and it's perch against a nicely oof, yet complementary background.  I too think some subtle burning of the brightest parts of the forward wing would let a bit more detail show (and I'm working on a calibrated monitor).
Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments
Comment posted by Daniel & Loana on February 25, 2017 at 12:58 PM
Nice subject and composition.
Not easy to get good shots of active subjects.
Very well done.
D&L
Registered on October 7, 2008, 166 Posts, 3044 Comments
Comment posted by Bill Leggett on February 25, 2017 at 9:01 PM
Very well done, Yun.  Can't help with the I.D., but really nicely composed with clean, natural surroundings and nice light.
Registered on July 21, 2004, 706 Posts, 3233 Comments
Comment posted by Steve Gettle on February 28, 2017 at 2:30 PM
Nice job with tough lighting. Loved the background.
Registered on November 29, 2016, 36 Posts, 111 Comments