I apologise for starting a new thread but I'm finding the original too chaotic - I'd much prefer a single thread for each original image.

This is a continuation of my interest in dead flowers, an Arum Lily from my garden.

Here's a straight from the camera, re-sized, jpg for anyone interested to play with:
Title: Kevin Lily #1

And one interpretation:
Title: Kevin Lily #2Which is simply a curves adjustment and a gradient overlay to fade the stem.

And here's the set-up:

Kevin

Very beautiful Kevin, You sure have some state of the art equipment. Your photography is very professional.

i tried using color correction script on it.

I stayed a long time contemplating the image of Arum Lily, no idea what could desire change in its current appearance.
Looking interpretation of Kevin, but mainly looking at the photo "set up", I noticed that the flower possessed greater illumination when posing to be photographed.

So I tried to go in that direction.
Just a blend Divide the first, and gradient blend in the second image.

I noticed a small barb on the flower. But only noticed this after sending my outcomes

paynekj - A wonderful Photo, so much emotion and feeling from just one flower.

I had a play, this is a rough guide to my approach

1. inverted desaturated layer set to overlay, to brighten the image.
2. new grey layer set to divide just to brighten image some more.
3. ran to separate sobel edge detects one vertical and the other horizontal then merged together and set layer to grain merge just to enhance edges.
4. added a pencil sketch layer set to colour just to bring back some of the detail lost in the next step.
5. Ran Gmic's dream smoothing filter with all the settings set to there highest on the original layer.
6. Finally liked the stem blended into the background so applied the same mask technique.

still playing with retinex
layers in overlay mode
here one result



not much time to play with, I'm out of my home (and my PC), used a PC available here

I agree 90% with you, Kevin.
By 90% I mean that:
1-keep ongoing the original topic
2-when an image on that topic is subject to many trials by the gimp-chatters, move all related posts on a new post, named -like yours- "sharing outcome - specific image"
For point 2, I'm asking Molly whether she can kindly take care of that.
At the moment, for instance, one of SallyAnne's pictures (1831_E~2893360) could be moved on a specific topic, having received many trials

So far Kevin's version still leads the pack IMHO.

This pictures also demonstrates that very often Gimp processing is a cover-up for a non-optimal shooting (*). A good photo has an intent/purpose (ie not taken more or less at random), and the shooting is done to express that purpose (lighting, background, depth of field...), both things being very well covered by Kevin's photo, so here is little you can do to technically improve the image (except blending the stem in the background), or change its intent..

(*) this is what makes Instagram popular. Smartphone pictures are usually crap, due to both camera and camera user, so any random filter you throw at them are going to make them look better.

Now, of course you can radically change the intent. The shape and structure looks a bit like a flame, so this can be made more obvious:

I agree with Ofnuts that Kevin's picture stays on top, but -imo- it's his "interpretation" which stays on top.
The original one I see as being like an excellent piece of music written down, which could be subject to many good interpretations (like music), as well as to many others average or poor ones.
True that this aspect cannot be in those cases (cases where the base picture is excellent) considered an enhancement, but more a variation, an interpretation as the author said of his own.

post-scriptum: I see now you too Ofnuts played with an interpretation, good!

Kevin,

I guess you -the author of this excellent original picture- should express your critiques on the various "variations", it would be certainly interesting...

another variation



some GEGL operations

Could not resist

OK here we go

In the order that they have been posted:

trandoductin: Image
That's come out quite well. Does the script allow for adjustments, or is it completely automatic? If it's automatic it's done a nice job as the colours have remained natural. I'd be happy to take that as a starting point for further adjustments - needs to be a bit brighter for my tastes.

Akros: #1 Images
That's a good version. Comparing it to mine, I prefer the colour you've got in the top half - mine is looking a little too green. I feel the 2nd picture has got a little too bright and you're right about the dust!

he4rty1 #1 Image
Surprisingly I like this very much. Usually I take these sort of pictures for the textures and shapes but here I like that you've kept some of the texture and smoothed out some of the rest. It's a very subtle painterly effect you've achieved.

dinasset: #1 Image
It's interesting that you've left it in landscape mode - that certainly gives a different perspective on the subject. I like that you've got it bright, but I'm not so keen on the grain/noise that's been introduced.

ofnuts: #1 Image
It can be fascinating what other people see in your images. I like what you've done. I think I'd take this idea but make the stem into the fuel source for the flame, like the wooden part of a match for example.

dinaset: #2 Image
I like the way you've got the stem half into shadow. It makes me wonder what the flower would look like with the same treatment.

Akros: #2 Image
Again, it's interesting to see what other people see. Now you've shown me this, I'm always going to see an elephant! - How would it look with the elephant in negative and semitransparent overlaid on the flower?


Thank you all for your interpretations

Ofnuts is right in saying that I try to get the best image I can in the camera, which sometimes doesn't leave much to do in post processing.

I did try to take an image that had some potential for alternative interpretations rather than forcing a particular direction on the image - which would normally be lots of shadows to pick out the textures.

I hope my critiques have been received in the spirit in which they are intended. I've been offering my opinions for what little they are worth, and I don't pretend to be giving the only correct answers. Don't try to impress anyone else, do something that you are happy with.

Kevin

still another experiment

Pretty good one. Summarizes the life of the flower: appears out of nothing, gives a brief splash of splendor, and vanishes into nothingness.

thanks Ofnuts!

my try