progress report - work on dead trunk premna

if I named trees ( I don't) this developing premna could be called the "guardian" or the "sentinal". long ways to go with the branching, ramification and foliage reduction, but the direction is set so its time and patience. several pictures playing with iso and brightness

best wishes, sam

Nice tree. I know nothing about Premna. Is the trunk treated with something or stained?

the trunk was previously sanded, stained and oiled. periodically apply oil to keep wood hydrated.

best wishes, sam

Coming along nicely!

Hi Sam,

Great tree... has lots of potential and yes your observations and comments are mine too exactly. The tree is set and time will do the rest in terms of ramification and foliage reduction.

On the ISO thing, set your camera for the lowest ISO when you are photographing your bonsai. This not only gives crisp images but also eliminates the 'grain'. Higher ISO (even 200 and above) is used for photographing moving objects in less than ideal light conditions. Just back from a holiday and took some night outdoor still photos in ISO 80 (not 800) using a tripod and low shutter speeds and they have come out great - no grain whatsoever

Ravi

thanks for the inputs guys. for ravi. I experimented with iso settings as high as 400, the images were lighter but unclear. went back to the auto setting for better results. also played around with brightness settings. currently at +1.

best wishes, sam

Why do you varnish/shellac/wax-finish the deadwood? Isn't lime sulfur sufficient? It looks like furniture or a sculpture, not bonsai.

hi tatum:

the natural color of the deadwood is very light-almost the same color as the bark. lime sulpher would make it even whiter. like white on white. here's a question for you-does the color of the deadwood determine what is bonsai and what is not?

best wishes, sam

C'mon your missing the point and attempting to justifying your unusual style. Is that how it looks in nature? Isn't part of bonsai replicating nature? I don't think they treat deadwood like that in Japan, do they? To answer you question: The deadwood color does not determine if it's "bonsai" or not. Just my silly opinion that's all.

thanks for the response tatum:

deadwood treatment like bonsai styling is a matter of taste and personal style. you have yours and I have mine-furniture or otherwise. my version of common sense says bleaching premna deadwood so it can't be differentiated from the lifeline would be silly unless I was after an all white tree. tropicals, at least the ones I have, do not have dark live lines like junipers. here the process is reversed to get contrast. darker deadwood light life line. what it comes down to is this, if you believe deadwood should only be lime sulphured - even on tropicals which don't naturally have bleached deadwood where I live, you should definitely go for it.

best wishes, sam

Dead wood in tropical climate IS silvery gray or white. Definitely not this color! Then again, it is your tree...

BINGO !!!

best wishes, sam

Okay, completely understandable.

thanks, tatum

best wishes, sam