I love taking nature photos. This one was a bit of an unexpected find:
ISO 800 50mm f/16 1/250sec
Unexpected for two reasons. The first is that it was taken in a cemetery, though you’d never know it from this photo. The second is that it was taken with my 50mm lens. I was able to get that close without the butterfly flying away.
The original file is this one:
ISO 800 50mm f/16 1/250sec
I chose this file to work with because I thought the exposure was pretty much perfect. I liked the amount of detail in both the butterfly and the flower it is sitting on. I also loved the summery colors in this image, what can I say, this winter just seemed to drag its feet on the way out this year. I cropped the photo and then the biggest edit was to remove the blade of grass that was just to the left of the flower, I found it pretty distracting. I used the healing tool in Lightroom for the removal. I have also boosted the luminance and clarity and added a vignette.
What do you think of the edit? Have you ever come across a nature image in an unexpected place? Feel free to comment below.
Cheers!
Added to Wandering Wednesday and Tuesday Photo Challenge.
Picfair version is here.
Photography Journal Blog 
Nice Meadow Brown Amy and I think your tweaks have worked well 🙂
LikeLike
So this happened Martin, I got the photo and was like, I wonder what type of butterfly this is, I bet if I ask Martin, he will know. Then I stumbled across this beautifully illustrated field guide and then I was pretty sure, but I thought, I’ll write this up and then ask Martin to confirm. Then I forgot to add that part because I was so busy writing about the edit. Then you confirmed anyway 🙂 Thanks.
LikeLiked by 1 person
np. A good field guide is definitely an asset. Meadow Browns can be a bit variable in their colouration though so there can be a degree of uncertainty 🙂
LikeLike
Yes, I was happy to have found it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love the photo ❤ I like taking pictures of nature too 🙂
LikeLike
Thank you 🙂 and nature does have a way of providing nice subject matter.
LikeLiked by 1 person
amazing shot. I don’t have macro lens, so my ‘macros’ are literally getting into insect’s face. and with butterflies, I didn’t have much luck.
LikeLike
Yes, generally with butterflies, I have much better luck using my 70-200mm lens, this butterfly was just intent on what he was doing and ignored me, which worked for both of us.
LikeLike
A beautiful capture Amy 🙂🦋
LikeLike
Thank you 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
The result is beautiful, Amy! Editing is an art work. 🙂
LikeLike
Thank you, I was really pleased with the final result here.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Beautiful composition and great edit!
LikeLike
Thank you very much!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Beautiful! Love how close you got to the lovely butterfly!
LikeLike
Yes, that was unexpected, usually, it is easier to shoot butterflies with a longer lens because they are less likely to notice you.
LikeLike
I love the sharp focus of the butterfly and flower. I must play with my 50mm equivalent lens in my garden! Thanks for sharing your settings and editing. I think LR does a great job!
LikeLike
Thank you, I’m always interested in settings and writing them here in my blog makes a good reference for me to see what has worked (or not!) in the past.
LikeLike
I appreciate your light touch in editing. (Sometimes photographers act like a kid in a candy store, grabbing every “artistic” special effect their software offers.) While flamboyant manipulations do work well for some images, subtle things like removing the distracting blade of grass tend to work better. It is so much harder to ignore distractions when viewing a photo than when actually experiencing the scene!
LikeLike
Thank you very much. I do think that sometimes it is easy to go overboard with editing 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love it Amy. Delicate yet vibrant. What a capture.
LikeLike
Thank you very much Sue.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round Up 115 – Dutch goes the Photo!
This is the photo I loved so much from Instagram. The butterfly is so amazing, just sitting there on the flower, very striking. There is something about the composition of this photo that really captured me. Maybe it’s a feeling of enchantment about butterflies? This time of year I’m sometimes seeing one, or a pair, of monarchs floating along above our trees or across the yard. It feels magical, odd though that sounds to write. 🙂
LikeLike
Thank you for this comment because I do think you have stated what I love about this photo, and that is the sense of enchantment. This is one photo that I really felt when I took it, that it would be a strong image.
LikeLiked by 1 person
There is something very special about this photo, with the butterfly poised in its way. 🙂
LikeLike
Thanks 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lovely captures 🙂
LikeLike
Thank you!
LikeLiked by 1 person