PhotoZAP 47: Here are your flowers

“I really just don't get this current trend of deliberately adding slight vignette effects to images”—Jack Howard

© Moses Mckenzie. Gear: Canon Rebel XSi with battery grip, Canon 24-70mm f/2.8, lit with 35-inch Octa-Box, wireless trigger.  Exposure not provided.

Photographer’s statement: "I shot this bride under a canopy and removed distractions in the background using Photoshop. I also enhanced the color of the flowers, but not beyond reality.  I’ve also included a “before” shot."

Before:

 
Our critics say...

Mason Resnick: The changes the photographer made in Photoshop were reasonable, and don’t interfere with the shot…except the vignetting, which I feel is overdone here. Pull the slider back and go for a more subtle look! That said, I like the focus on the flowers, and the tilted horizon gives the photo a nice, active diagonal. I could see this image in an album providing a good counterpoint to more standard wedding fare.

Jack Howard: That's a gorgeous bouquet and the controlled saturation boost really helps them pop. Flowers are a huge part of the whole wedding experience, and this is a very good detail shot for a wedding package. This is a fun, playful shot. I think it would be stronger if the original were a tiny bit looser to not have the left edge of frame intersecting the roses, as this does draw your eye out of the frame a little. And not to get all Andy Rooney here, but I really just don't get this current trend of deliberately adding slight vignette effects to images. It looks more like a technical flaw than an aesthetic decision.

Mark Lent (special guest Zapper!): I’ve seen this type of shot many times, but not nearly as well-executed. I appreciate the slant and perspective; the shot has a strong photojournalism appeal. Even though we know the shot is posed, it gives it a more spontaneous feel. If I had to nit-pick this shot, it would be in the flowers themselves. I feel they need even more burning and saturation. The color in the flowers has a wilted look and it weakens the image color-wise, particularly since the main subject has so much white.