In the past, I’ve done many attempts to photography an orchid in a different way. So far, I always had the impression that either: looks way too straightforward *or* so abstract that you can’t see it’s an orchid anymore.
I was recently “playing” with a macro ring flash (MR-14EX) and its ratio function to trigger an 580EX off-camera flash. It’s meant to light the background, but adjusting the C: ratio and flash exposure compensation it’s possible to use it also to light the subject of your image.
Here’s my first orchid photo I’m happy with:

-gerard.