Want critique Adenium Plant flowers

[Andy Smith]

I don't have any experience with flower images but I do love flowers, especially in my garden. I have an Adenium in my garden that has just come into bloom and the flowers are gorgeous so I thought I would take a snap. Adeniums are sometimes called Desert Rose, and have unusual and sometimes pretty weird stems, which makes them popular as Bonsai trees.
I appreciate any feedback or critique on how to improve this image and any future flower images.
Thanks all.

Canon R5, Canon RF 100mm f/2.8 Macro, natural light.
f/2.8, ISO 100, 1/160th

 

[Chavezshutter]

Very good for an attempt into something new, the colours are very nice, soft bokeh, framing looks good, I dont mind the border at all, suits the subject well. Focus looks excellent, good details and texture. One thing that I noticed is the light. Credit to you for moving away from what is familiar and using more natural light to experiment ( I have been doing a little of this myself lately ) but I do think that this photo needs a little more light. If i had to guess these flowers were in shade and in those conditions I would use some type of lighting, maybe LED torch? If I had to stick to natural light I would either try to position the flower in better light ( if possible ), wait until more light hits the flower or as a last resort raise ISO, but of course you can get a similar result by raising exposure just a little in post. Apart from the low light I think this is a very good result for an early attempt, good job

 

[Andy Smith]

Very good for an attempt into something new, the colours are very nice, soft bokeh, framing looks good, I dont mind the border at all, suits the subject well. Focus looks excellent, good details and texture. One thing that I noticed is the light. Credit to you for moving away from what is familiar and using more natural light to experiment ( I have been doing a little of this myself lately ) but I do think that this photo needs a little more light. If i had to guess these flowers were in shade and in those conditions I would use some type of lighting, maybe LED torch? If I had to stick to natural light I would either try to position the flower in better light ( if possible ), wait until more light hits the flower or as a last resort raise ISO, but of course you can get a similar result by raising exposure just a little in post. Apart from the low light I think this is a very good result for an early attempt, good job

Thanks Chavezshutter, the flowers were indeed shaded. I actually also darkened the image down a little in post because I felt the original was too bright and looked over saturated somewhat. Good feedback from you on the light, I will continue to practice and try to improve this.

 

[Andy Smith]

I added a curve adjustment layer to brighten the image. I feel this is better now. What are your thoughts?
Thanks all.

 

[Chavezshutter]

I added a curve adjustment layer to brighten the image. I feel this is better now. What are your thoughts?
Thanks all.

View attachment 21539

Chances are your monitor is better calibrated than mine . But this last version looks spot on to me, I can see the details and background colour contrast better. It looks a bit like dodge and burn, nicely done.

I have to add here that if you were chasing a darker, moodier edit then perhaps my light advice is irrelevant, but that is something you can decide. I have seen this darker style of edit and it can really - pardon the pun - shine in the right scene. One thing I know from experience is that colours are more vibrant in darker settings. So many choices.....

 

[TMG1961]

I like the second one.

 

[Andy Smith]

I like the second one.

Me too now TMG1961...

 

[lovitazoe]

I like the 2nd one, Andy. Lovely bokeh and colours.