Delicate flowerby
CamManComment by CEJ: Hello from the Critique Club!
I have studied your image and have the following to offer:
Composition/perspective - this image has a lot of appeal and could be a much stronger entry with a few changes perhaps. The flower, although not dead center, could be a little more to the left to really nail down application of the rule of thirds. If the crop was a little different to either get the full bud at the top in the shot or remove it completely would also have helped. Your angle to the subject is very good and the ratio between subject and background is very nice. If the main subject was in focus the DoF would work very nicely.
Color - wow! This image has a very strong palette with vibrant and alive colors. The contrasts between in flower colors and flower to background works very nicely. A small boost in contrast may have brought them out a bit more even without hurting the image at all.
Lighting - it appears only natural light was used. The only choice here. You have no bright spots and everything appears to be fairly uniform. Well done.
Challenge requirements - this meets the challenge requirements quite well. Showing just enough of the inside of the flower without pointing directly into it really helps.
Overall/my opinion - where this image falls down is the focus. Applying some sharpening and/or USM may have helped to make it look not so fuzzy. The background is ok, it is the flower that should be clear. If this had been, I think this would have fared much better in the challenge.
Photographer found comment helpful.