Possible to add a foliage section?

Thanks for the suggestion. We have actually talked about this idea a few times. It always comes back to there not being enough interest to open its own section. So what I do, is if there is a particular plant that I am interested in, I ask if the person would not mind posting a picture of the plant itself. It is not a 100% method, as some people resist, but I find that some people are quite happy to oblige.

Some people will act indifferent about it, but are secretly happy when you ask the question. Like Dale for instance. He loves that question.

 

*smacks Forrest*

I'll make a plant photo if the genus isn't commonly grown or if the species is vegetatively unique for the genus. It takes me 30 seconds to describe the plant. It takes me 15 minutes to make a photo. The possibility of me making a plant photo specifically to post to a Foliage Section is infinitely small to non-existent.

 

I like the idea personally! Unique foliage is one of the draws for me to the more unique species. Since I just put pics up on photobucket anddont alter them its no big deal for me. You see the foliage all year, you only see the flowers briefl in comparison. Lets have a foliage thread COME ON!


Dendrobium lichenastrum

 

I like it too. I usually have to google or search flicker to find full plant photos.

 

I think a foliage thread would be a good idea in the Everything Else Orchid section. And that image would be a good starter! Go for it!

To the original question... a "foliage" section isn't going to happen. A foliage thread, though, is a good idea.

 

Re-read Dale's post. It might make sense to you then.

 

I think what it comes down to is that once you have been growing for a while, there are very few plants that you do not know what they look like. And of those that you don't, there are even fewer that you care to know what they look like.

I do not think that you will win the hearts of the masses by insisting on a campaign to alter the way people post. But, you may have some great success leading by example. I look forward to seeing your foliage thread and the pictures that will fill it.

 

I will start making sure to post foliage pics Mike

 

"I dont see how it could take the average person more than 2 minutes."

That's part of the difference right there. Photography is part of my orchid passion and I want to do the best job I can with the equipment I possess. I got over snapshots when I was 12.

Here's what happens when I make a photo:

I trudge my tired ass out to the GH and find plants I want to photograph.

I bring them back to my 'studio' and place them on a table.

I change lenses from my everyday lense to my macro lense.

I change camera settings from 'full auto' to 'manual'.

I find my gray card and make an exposure for custom white balance.

I get the plant I want to photograph and place it on my 'stand'.

Then I pose the plant/flower and make sure it won't move during the exposures. I often take several to many minutes for this step. Tape, clothes pins, wire splints...

I mount the camera to the tripod and move either the subject, stand, or tripod to achieve the frame I want.

If I'm making a stacked photo, I make sure my macro slider is at the far back position to provide sufficient rail to span the required DOF.

I then make a test exposure and adjust f/stop or shutter speed to achieve correct exposure.

I then make a series of photos, up to 12, for the stack.

I bring my camera back in the house and download the photos to my hard drive.

I open the RAW files in Capture One, make adjustments to the series of photos for that frame, then convert the RAW files to Hi-Res jpegs and save them in a folder.

I then open a focus stacking program (either CZM or Helicon Focus), select the files for stacking, and click 'run'. The focus stacking program sometimes takes 5-7 minutes to do the stack, but I'm not counting that against my 15 minutes.

I save the stack and open it in Adobe PhotoShop Elements for final polishing and title-ing. Save.

Done!

I'll admit... the steps after "Then I pose the plant/flower..." are pretty much a duplication of steps that would be required to make a flower photo, other than re-framing and a lense change, but processing is the main time expenditure for me.

I make my photos for my personal enjoyment and records. I'm happy to share them with the forum as long as I don't get too much heat for what I choose to photograph and what I don't choose to photograph. You can find thousands of photos of masdevallia, oncidium, dendrobium, cattleya, etc, etc, etc...... on the 'net.

 

Don't let Dale fool ya. He loves to be asked. Seriously. He has nothing better to do.