I visited the poppies by the expressway again. There are many poppies past prime, but still many photographs to be had. I have a photographer friend, Courtland White, who finds faces in landscapes. It is called “Pareidolia,” the human tendency to perceive patterns, particularly faces, where none exists. He says that once you see the face, you can never not see it. It can corrupt your photography. This morning when I was out photographing poppies, I kept seeing faces or parts of faces. The top ones remind me of a Venetian mask. My husband prefers the top photo and feels that it has more impact. I like the way the second photo floats. Both have a sense of mystery. Which one do you prefer? What do they remind you of?
The above photo reminds me of a set of lips. I had fun applying 2 different textures in Topaz Texture Effects to the lips. The first one lightened and smoothed out the background. There were already dew drops on the poppy, but the texture added more, especially to the background giving it an underwater look.