Not Your Daddy's Apple
by noraneko

Comment by moonlight _sky:
I would prefer the right side not orange. Maybe a electronic product would be better.

Elphin
by noraneko

Comment by JuliBoc:
This shot has so much potential. The focus and exposure are great. I love the nice relaxed expression you captured. I like the crop too. I hope you won't mind my sharing a few ideas of what I would like to do with it.

In an extreme close up of a girl this age, I would do a significant amount of retouching. I find the darkness and texture around the nose, and the specks on the lips distracting. I would use the healing brush to clear up any blemishes, and a very slight surface blur to smooth any roughness in the skin. I would also remove the hair covering her eyebrow. The eye is a beautiful feature, and I think it could be enhanced by slightly burning the edge of the eyelashes like eyeliner. The white of the eye almost looks painted. I might use the healing brush to remove the worst of the red lines, but I'd leave enough detail to keep it real.

I don't know if these "enhancements" would make it a better photo, but I think the girl would enjoy it more.

I Know It's Around Here Somewhere...
by noraneko

Comment by Nocturnal_Delusion:
Good Macro but it feels very shoehorned for the challenge. I'm not a big fan of the border either.

I Know It's Around Here Somewhere...
by noraneko

Comment by Balko:
nice capture - 8

Elphin
by noraneko

Comment by jaysonmc:
Very enchanting capture. I like the nice warm light on this. The green really pops well.

Swallowtail
by noraneko

Comment by bmartuch:
Very nice shot Catherine. As usual, great detail. The square crop is quite interesting.

Swallowtail
by noraneko

Comment by jaysonmc:
Do you have a butterfly garden, I think all of ours died 2 months ago. Wonderful capture. Very nice delicate colors.

Elphin
by noraneko

Comment by kashi:
Gorgeous girl.

The whites of her eye lack detail though - the lines and shading that we all have - makes it look a bit overdone.

Swallowtail
by noraneko

Comment by patio127:
Wonderful shot- sharpness & detail are spot on with that beautiful BG- a fave of mine !

Elphin
by noraneko

Comment by bassbone:
Interesting effort here - the eyes seem a bit overdone to me - too white in the whites. Also, not sure if it real or not, but the skin looks a little oversmoothed.

I know portraits are not your comfort zone and I think you did a really nice job with the lighting and the tones and colors. Does this mean I have to try some portraits now?!