Annemarie, great idea! It does look like an alien landscape. You have a good eye for what most people would just walk by. Since you asked, here are my suggestions (again!): Increasing the depth of field (DOF) via the apperture setting (a higher number) brings more of the view in focus. My guess is that something (like the tip of a branch) was obstructing the view and since it was out of focus it caused that blurry spot. This happens often in macro shots and you typically have to work around them. If all fails, you can crop the image as was suggested. To hold the camera still you can either use a tripod (or something like a little bean bag) or just rest it on firm ground. At times even pressing the shutter causes the camera to shake(especially in low light conditions) You could even use the timer feature to make sure that the camera doesn't move when the shutter is released.
heh, yes you're right, it is the inside of a piece of bark from a tree which had dutch elm disease. i will probably leave this picture as it is but thanks for the advice, i'm sure it will be useful in future photos.
Annemarie, My guess would be that this is a piece of wood that has had insects eating away at it and made trails in the process, perhaps a powderpost beatle. It's either that or you just returned from a visit to a distant planet and this a quick snapshot you took as your spaceship left the ground. Was I close on either guess? My suggestion for the blurry corner would be to just crop it out or...I suppose you could cut it out in the computer insert it back in the same spot then use unsharp mask and sharpen just that piece. Hope that helps. Good Luck Dave
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