Fido

Why did you think you had to mask the shadows to retain the detail? If it's in the negative it's available via paper/dodging&burning. The out-of-focus may have to do with film/mask curvature.

@jtk It's a contact print and I use glass plates to keep everything flat.
With masking I just texter the shadows on tracing paper and lay over negative. Its the only practical way to do precise dodging.
Its out of focus using a loupe on the negative.
Really it needs reshooting, as there was a slight breeze and the dead weed was moving I had to use a faster shutter speed than I would of normally. Think it would work better as a Vandyke Brown. We learn from our mistakes.