Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

These flowers grow on trees which line the roads where I live. They are the size of a small hand of bananas and look similar before they flower. Lifespan is quite short for each bunch of flowers and they look best when just past their prime and scorched by the sun and about to drop off the tree.
For Your Consideration.
Edits welcomed but please do not cover with squiggly scrawly bits. Anyone wanting a shot with perfectly focused flower and a nice blurry background please feel free to ask. I'm sure I can produce one in about 30 seconds for you.

(Download)

Frank2013 Loc: San Antonio, TX. & Milwaukee, WI.

I'm asking.....

Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

Nap time here mate! Google boring flower images and you will get plenty.

Frank2013 Loc: San Antonio, TX. & Milwaukee, WI.

You are very talented Mr. Spad....google's got nothing on you.....

Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

Thank you for the compliment young Frank

Frank2013 Loc: San Antonio, TX. & Milwaukee, WI.

Not a compliment, just a fact...it would be nice if you would apply yourself here....

jenny Loc: in hiding:)

* * * * *
Wow

jenny Loc: in hiding:)

Well, there you go Billy, leaving me speechless again.

Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

Frank I applied myself to this inspired by minnie's excellent first shot of a wild flower of some sort. Its made and shown in the vain hope that a splurge of the usual intensely boring shots of flowers with blurry backgrounds does not descend upon us.
In ability I'm no better than most here and only half as good as some but the standard of work generally has fallen to such a level that the desire to apply myself does not often happen. I have seriously considered producing dross and having it described as inspirational or being encouraged to produce more as its experimental and must therefore be part of a journey leading God knows where. I try every week to edit someones dodgy landscape with a few sliders and a bit of added contrast to produce something that looks like what everyone else has turned out. I admit to failure my friend. I cannot do it.
So every now and again I will post a serious image hopefully that has taken effort and thought such as this. It will be original in concept without reliance upon swamping it in Topaz. Very few will comment or indeed view because they have difficulty with my absolutely honest critique of what they post here. So much difficulty in fact that they do not wish to hear anything other than praise on their snaps so they ban me lol. Ask me if I care?
So you know this flower of mine is OK jenny thinks the same I was satisfied with the result so who the hell else matters?

Frank2013 Loc: San Antonio, TX. & Milwaukee, WI.

I apologize for not being clear....I like your flower and think you applied yourself producing it... I meant applying yourself in general in the section to try and better it. I've no issue with your critique's and look forward to them although I've not received any from you on my last two or three posts. I don't have to ask if you care, your continued participation here answers that and I would like to believe in some small way I matter....I Believe you are selling yourself short in the ability department, start posting some work again and help raise the bar...I for one miss it.

Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

If I missed your posts Frank it's nothing personal I assure you. Im having my house extended as we speak so for the past few months have been up to my neck in architects, blueprints and construction guys. Oh and not to forget an agitated Mrs Billy who does not like upset or mess. I know you welcome honest critique Frank but many prefer pure praise.

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

Glad my humble weeds could inspire you to share some real work with us here, Billy. You have a rather unique grunge style and it's always interesting, whether one likes the image or not. I shall be honest with you, as I am with everyone here: I like some things about this image and find other parts unappealing. You stress the importance of honesty and I agree with you, though we may differ in our opinions and in ways of expressing them.

The flower itself is appealing - its own texture, your use of color, the "crunchiness" of detail, and placement in frame. I also like that you've held on to bits of the natural background with its brights and darks. I find the bulging light underside of the leftmost flower distracting. There's too much contrast between the lights and darks around the flower, especially on the right (which I take to be part of the layering work) for my taste.

The applied texture effect is not one I find appealing. The criss cross lines used here and "hairy" effects that I've seen you use on other flower images have the same off-putting effect for me as the curlicue effects of some PS and Topaz filters. I realize that is personal taste, but personal taste and a smattering of caught knowledge about art and/or photography is all most of us have to offer here. I won't try to edit, because without the layered or original file, there would be no way to compensate for the criss cross effect, so I'll just say I'd have made a different choice of grunge texture while also recognizing that you have every right to choose the one YOU want, and if crisscross floats your creative boat, I support you in doing that.

Likewise, I support all of our folk in pursuing images they like or want, as opposed to what I like or wan. I believe experimentation is a necessary component of creativity. For the life of me, I cannot figure out why someone with as free as spirit as yours would scold people for trying new things. If you or I (or anyone) had never experimented with anything new but instead clung tightly to whatever shooting and processing stuff we knew when we started photography, what sort of images would we be posting?

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

I have no idea what you've done here, Billy, but I really like it--any hints as to the processing?

Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

Honesty about my images is never a problem min. This like most I do in this vein either appeal or do not and I fully realise that. If I wanted an image with universal appeal it would be sharply focused with the blurry background routine. So please always shower me with your true feelings. I really only produce stuff like this to please me but that does not mean the opinion of others is not welcomed
Re scolding that's a little harsh young min. I just try and be totally honest without the banal musings which go on here. I shall use Erich as a recent example as his shoulders are broad and he does have a genuine desire to master other things. His recent post of an image presented of a book with a church superimposed upon it was complete crap as he had presented it. Who gave him an idea that would make it work? Was that me? And who made banal comments about it? That was not me!
If I think somethings awful I say exactly that but along the way try and make the idea work for the individual. We have had this discussion before about totally honest commenting versus banality. The banality is why very few good images appear here nowadays. No one feels they have to try. Finger painting and selfies along with shooting a flash gun off in the dark to get a random pattern is the way forward it seems. And all likely to be described as an inspiration to others.

jenny Loc: in hiding:)

To be totally honest has been so totally impossible for me, for so long now, that in all
honesty I probably totally don't belong commenting in this topic at all. The section became
unable to claim much of my attention, and for many of the reasons enumerated by Billy.
Therefore I have no idea what weeds minnie may have shown here that would arouse
Billy to show a picture of flowers, especially the type of floral he chose, in response to it.
I have been "out to lunch" both literally and otherwise by choice occupied elsewhere,
anywhere but here.

But in all honesty, my first response, saying only "Wow" was in response to Frank's
regret that Billy didn't apply himself, for however it was meant. If I had made such a response
as that I would have been promptly deleted by the user/manager!

The Wow, then Billy, well. I rarely respond to anything inviting critique because I don't get any
real joy in doing it from those who ask for it but don't want anything but praise and new
photoshop hints. Refraining from this game because I prefer to enjoy whatever has been presented
rather than concentrating on trying to change it, I recently asked minnie if she was serious in
presenting a picture as actually being one, but I even got deleted for that!

The risk of being honest once again then Billy, your picture, being this sort of strong statement it is,
presented as a reply for min., and described, labeled or titled as is, "Another flower with soul", should be
considered first and last for what it is. So my impression is quite different from minnie's, and I honestly
think she is not able to read it at all when concentrating on her likes and dislikes in it, or how she would
do it differently. This picture FOR minnie, does not describe minnie at all of course. It describes Billy.
It's impact is.....Wow, It hits hard, Billy. It's relentless. This has absolutely nothing to do with "liking"or
not, it is a statement one might begin to philosophize about....Billy, I sure couldn't hang it on my wall
because looking too often it might bring me to tears.....good job Billy!