To create the image above I started with a mediocre shot of a close-up tulip (original capture, straight out-of-camera, shown below). I took the image into Photoshop and cloned out the green area at the top of the frame, next I added the Pinch Filter, under Filter> Distort> Pinch then I added the Transform Tool> Warp to pull the flower center out of the center. Voile, my image was almost complete. I added a slight bit of sharpening and did some clean-up work to get rid of some of the blemishes (that could have been done beforehand).
I know that image manipulation is not for everyone—but I thoroughly enjoy spending time at my computer working on artistic creations. In 2010 I won my first Nature’s Best Highly Honored Image in the Creative Digital Category-they have done away with that category now. But many other competitions celebrate creative artistry. Best to check the rules carefully before submitting to any competition.
For more ideas on how to add some artistic flair to some of your photos, check out one of my eBooks-sold only through A Creative Adventure HERE.
Original Capture