yellow cluster
by collie65

Comment:
This photo definitely meets the challenge, but it is suffering from a number of technical issues. The first is lighting. Natural light can be a pain to work with, either its too bright or not bright enough, not shining where you need it, it goes on. In this case the lighting is not sufficient to highlight the subject or to bring out any interesting details. If possible I would suggest a second light source to try and brighten up the area, or reshoot when the sun is more cooperative. Focus looks like it may be good, but with the low light its hard to make out any details of the flowers which makes it difficult to determine how well focused the image is. As it stands it looks a bit soft, though the main subject does seem to have a tighter focus than the background which is good. Composition could use a bit of work, I say this because you do have an interesting (though often done) subject in these flowers, but the background is competing greatly with them. The busy-ness of the background takes away from the impact your main grouping of flowers (subject) can offer. If you could blur the background out more, I'd suggest into a mass of pale yellow if possible with your camera, I think that would not only help isolate your subject but give an interesting gradient of color from white to yellow in the background. The choice of subject is good, fits the challenge and there is potential here but I think the biggest element causing problems is the lighting which is effecting everything else the most. 3

Golden Melody
by DeniseBernadette

Comment:
Beautiful image, beautiful subject. The lighting is excellent, not sure if you had any say over it or not, but if not it was well utilized, if so, very nicely placed. The clarity is wonderful. Composition is great. There is a slight melancholy to the image, her face looks like there's an underlying sadness somewhere. I think this is captured just wonderfully. The only thing I'd suggest changing is perhaps cropping it just below where her shirt shows on her chest. The reason I say that is much of that microphone in the front is (necessarily) out of focus and that's a bit distracting. Cropping it at her shirtline would get rid of much of that while still allowing the image to breathe. Nicely done. 7

pINkTRUDER ALERT
by obsidian

Comment:
Wow. Don't let anyone say you don't meet the challenge. Hehe. I like the composition for the most part. The flowers are very nice as is the teapot. The combination of the two makes for some nice interest. I'm not sure I like the white background. It seems a little too much and makes the subjects feel like they aren't grounded anywhere. I do like the tilt of the subjects though. I could see this being a nice stock picture as well, it is technically nicely done and has a bit of whimsy. Not a fan of pink so I'm not too sure if I like the carnation or not. it does add a nice punch and breaks up all that yellow. The focus is also a little bit soft in some areas, not sure why though. 6

Bumble Bee
by sherpet

Comment:
Awww. Very cute. I love all the different points of interest in this image too. The addition of the flowers is excellent, really gives the image some more depth rather than just being a flat photo of a bear in a costume. They also add a nice contrast color with the white while still tying in with the theme (bear bee) and having the yellow compliments. To me, the lighting looks a bit harsh. I'm not sure if having a light set somewhere else to add fill and get rid of some of the shadowing on the right would help, or if simply softening the light with a piece of drafting paper or tissue paper over the light would help more. I think the light is also what is making the focus just a smidge soft. Overall its got some excellent focus but it doesn't have that tack-sharp POP that is achieveable. Finally I think the blue background - though a nice contrast - competes too much with the yellow. Its like they feed off each other to see who can be brighter, not sure if that makes sense. Though there is plenty of black in the costume of the bear, I think a black background would've been a good choice, especially since the main colors, the white, the bright yellow and the honey-brown of the bear and whatever its sitting on are excellent contrasts with black. With a fill light or two, you might not lose the antennae against a black background - take that with a grain of salt though, I'm no expert! - 6

Parakeet
by angela_packard

Comment:
I love the color combinations, well chosen. The color is good as is the lighting. The composition is simple and very nice. I think the border is a bit too much yellow, a black border might have tied it all up better. There is an oddness to the focus.. it looks like the stick is well focused and parts of the parakeet as well, but others have a smudgy quality. Perhaps due to compression, not sure. A solid photo. 6.

Natural
by Steveinnz

Comment:
It looks like a gigantic sun! I like the composition of this, the full on view with the petals splaying out towards the viewer. The colors are very nice, and it certainly meets the challenge. The lighting is a bit harsh though. It looks like you're using natural light so I'm not sure how possible using a handheld diffuser would be, but that would give a more even soft light that would get rid of (partially) the harshness of the lighting and some of those less than attractive shadows. The background makes for a nice contrast, but there's an odd.. dirty quality to it along the bottom, some brownish or grey cast, not sure what that is. Also the fact that the background has a very noticeable change from black to blue is a little distracting. A uniform background would definitely help, and if I were choosing I'd probably go with either a darker blue, black, dark green, something that's going to set off that yellow even more. The focus is too soft for an image like this, particularly with the way it is set up. This, to me, begs for clear, sharp focus so each of the petals are nicely deliniated which would also highlight the nice wheel of pattern it has. 4.

Butterfly
by faidoi

Comment:
Delightful! The yellow tones are very nice, the simple presentation is excellent. The lighting is well done and the focus looks good. There seems to be some softening of the focus but that may be due to compression. There is also some odd artifacts ringing the butterfly, not sure what that's from. Very nice. 6

Weed to some, flower to others
by spartacus9

Comment:
Sometimes I love 'em, sometimes I hate 'em. That's dandelions for ya. Definitely fits the challenge, but technically there are some things that aren't appealing to me as a viewer. First is composition. The subject is the dandelion yet the hand is taking up most of the image, there is interest in the hands with the dirt on them, makes me think that the person has been gardening, but the way the hands have been used to present the subject (dandelion) doesn't draw me in and in fact is rather bland. The lighting is very harsh. Sunlight naturally is so which makes it hard to use, a diffuser might have helped, or some shade with a fill light. Not sure, hard to say when you aren't there to see what the surroundings offer. The focus is fairly soft, a crisper image in general is better - there are always reasons artistically for a soft focus but in this case it doesn't look as though the focus was purposely kept soft which degrades the image. Finally, the background has some odd elements in it, which though blurred out still come through and add a busy-ness that doesn't help the photo. I think a different way of presenting the dandelion would go a long way in improving the concept behind the image (assuming I'm understanding it). An example is if you're trying to highlight the floral nature of the "weed", placing it in a bud vase with some nice soft lighting to highlight the yellow and a black background might work - give a feeling of elegance to something typically tossed and reviled. Just an idea! I gave a 4.

Ready for bathtime
by Cooz

Comment:
What a sweetheart. Adorable model, excellent subject that is easily relateable and grabs the viewer. The focus is excellent, lighting is very nice. The whites are a bit too white in the towel as some of the fluffiness is lost, but overall they are handled superbly. The duck gives just the right amount of shout to the image, keeps it from being a lovely but oft-done picture. 7

Yellow
by cfischl

Comment:
Lovely in its simplicity. The contrast between the yellow and blue is very nice, as is the use of natural light. The focus looks like its a bit soft, not sure if more sharpening would've helped or hindered. I think this is a nice image but though it has a nice simplicity as I mentioned, it also has a low impact visually beyond the brilliance of the yellow. Maybe if the background had an even greater contrast, a dark green or black. Or if the flower were more backlit rather than full front light which would add more depth and drama. 5