Submitter's Name:	Ira Kahn
Title:	Thistle
Camera:	Pen FT
Lens:	150mm f/4 on extension ring
Film:	Ilford HP5
Post Processing:	Color added by computer in an attempt to imitate toning.
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Comment left by: bbbean (bbbean@beancotton.com)

Nice! This is the sort of shot I'd like to take when I get a little more comfortable with Macro.

Comment left by: Eric Pederson (epederso@darkwing.uoregon.edu)

Nice computer sepia and lovely thistle detail. I know this was a half-frame shot (i.e. portrait in the viewfinder), but I find this landscape orientation unsettling since the flower appears to be tipped over. On the other hand, when I tilt my head, I prefer the landscape orientation with this tight cropping since the cropped out portion of the flower works better for me as the base of the photo than snipped off the left of the photo.

Comment left by: Tim Hughes (Hi100@aol.com)

I like the orientation and the marbeled bokeh image. It would be nice to see the original as there seems to be a fair bit of compression/scan noise in the web image.

Comment left by: andrew fildes (afildes@netlink.com.au)

I agree with comments on orientation. Otherwise, a tough shot done well. Chromogenic film, like Kodak T400CN would give this tone and contrast level with finer grain, I think - ideal for half-frame.

Comment left by: siddiq (siddim01@student.ucr.edu)

since the FT is half frame, is the focal length 150mm for that film size or it is in 35mm equivalent? also, if i may ask (the frame looks rotated 90deg CCW--thistle stem lower right), why did you rotate it (btw, i agree with eric's comment re. the same)

Comment left by: Jay Maynard (jmaynard@conmicro.cx)

How exactly did you do the toning? That's the kind of technique II'll stick in my bag of tricks. I'd prefer this in portrait orientation; the tight cropping doesn't bother me, as I'm a fan of really tight cropping anyway.

Comment left by: Paul Schings (ZuikoholicRI@aol.com)

I love the toning, and the background. This image has a great 3D quality for me - almost like it was shot through an electron microscope. Or maybe it belongs in an epsiode of the X-files...

Comment left by: Anonymous Visitor

Am aware of the orientation difficulties, but both the fly and I feel uncomfortable this way. He could never have made such a landing! Toning done with photo shop color adjust then touched up with brightness and contrast. 150mm is HF format. Like the T400CN tip. No X-files here, just flies and thorns

Comment left by: Lex (lexjenkins@hotmail.com)

How imaginative! While I can see the possibilities of a "finer-grained" version (less digital noise), I like this as well. The grittiness complements the overall image - a fly (not one of our favorite insects, hmm?) on a thistle. And I agree with the comparison of the background to marbling. There's not a thing I'd change in the framing or composition - it appeals to my morbid sense of humor. FWIW, the technique I use to digitally tone pix is to first desaturate them 100% (this perfectly matches the RGB channel histograms). This seems to help minimize the headaches of getting just the right tone. I like the tone you've got here.

Comment left by: Gregg Iverson (giverson@webkorner.com)

I would agree with Paul. If this were cropped tightly on the base of the thistle, I would have thought this were a scan from an electron microscope. The tone really accents the texture in this photo.

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