Silent Whisper
by rubienne

Comment:
Great image. I like the shapes of this and the lighting looks great. I very much think thhis is zennish, a zennish abstract. I think the contrast between the rounded edges and the rigid straightness of the stems is wonderful. I don't normally say this but I do find the strip of focused leaf to be distracting. I think a meld of softness that we'd see without it would look wonderful and very zen. I'm not sure if others would agree of course, but that's my vote! I gave a 6

Chopsticks
by shudderbug

Comment:
I think this has some great zen qualities. I love the way the grass and their reflections almost form words. I wonder if Kikiko means anything? I think this image has a great bit of potential but the flat color and low lighting hurts it a bit. I think more light and richer colors would really give this image even more oomph. I gave the image a 6 despite the issues as I really like the capture and its potential.

Feathers from an Angel
by judojoe

Comment:
Lovely model and a great picture. I'm having a tough time feeling zen about it as a viewer though. I think the lighting is great and the composition is very nice for a portrait. The focus seems a skosh soft in some areas and some detail is lost in that respect. From a zen standpoint I find the image VERY busy precisely because of the elaborateness of the girl's outfit. I don't feel at peace or serene looking at the image as a whole simply because there's so much detail in the feathers and the mottled background. That said I think a closeup of the girl's face, blowing the feather would be fairly zen to me. The stillness of the feather floating in the air and the removal of all the extreneous outfit details would simplify the image and that I think would go a long way to giving it more zen. That is of course just my opinion. I gave a 6.

Ahhh....Four Steps To Happiness!
by Kita

Comment:
Interesting still life. Would be very nice in the B&W in color challenge as well. I like the alternating cup handles, I think that adds balance to the image, I think the lighting is great too. Focus looks dead on and the composition is nice but I think I'd rather it was shifted just a bit more off-center and in a zen-sense I find the flower distracting. You have some great lines and curves andthe white and black is working wonderfully together and then eeeeeerrrrt! Bright yellow! It really interrupts the visual calm my eyes were enjoying and jolts them out of zen-mode. Still a very nice image. I gave a 6

Sunset at the Lake
by lifternessjt

Comment:
Typically I don't necessarily find all land/seascapes inherently zen-like. I do like this one because of the mellow colors and how they smoothly meld together and the fact that the lake is nearly completely still. There are some ripples but not so much that I lose the feeling of utter calm. That said I think cropping off the bottom where the rocks or whatever those two whitish-grey things are would help the composition a bit. This would help make the balance between above the horizon and below a bit more even in my mind. I gave a 6

My Moment of Zen
by PhotoTess

Comment:
I love the balance of this. I don't even think the drop is necessary, but that's just me. It does well in its ability to bring the eye to the leaves and bouncing the attention down to the little leaf spikes at the bottom though. I think the softer focus is perfect, it engenders a tranquil feeling for me and I do admit the drop gives me an impression of stillness.. the pause just before it falls. Excellent zen capture. I gave a 7.

Peaceful Fern Accent
by frestepi

Comment:
I think this is beautiful. I love how it glows out of the background. There is a lot of shape detail here which some might find too busy, but I think the way its been composed - to the center of the image and surrounded by black - makes the way the different shapes of plants play off one another a zennish experience. I do wish the image itself were bigger though. I think for an even stronger "zen" feel having just the floating leaves (leave out the ferns) in a sea of black would really push it higher. I gave a 6

Green Wonder
by levyj413

Comment:
A nice simple composition that has a calmness to it with how the frog nearly melts into the background. I like the large negative space given and the color is very vibrant. I wish the lighting were a bit brighter on the frog to give it just a smidge more oomph. The focus looks okay but a bit soft on the backend of the frog. Over all I think its a good Zen representation. I gave a 6

Yao Zao Longzhou
by Rebecca

Comment:
Simply beautiful. The colors are gorgeous and the shapes are excellent. I think this might feel a bit more zennish for me if there were only the one boat, particularly that one in the upper left-hand corner, but still the pattern of the shapes makes for a long line to look out which can be calming. The calm water also helps speak to stillness and serenity and the shapes in general have a simple nature to them. I gave a 7

Fishing is my path to Enlightenment
by edmeng

Comment:
Very nice. I like the left-centric composition. The long lines of the reeds is great, especially how they contrast to the more jagged or curvy sticks above it. The still-ish water helps bring a feeling of peace to the image and the bobber thingie helps save the image from being a complete wash of grey and brown boringness. It really helps emphasize the rest of the image. I gave a 7