The Thrill of Youth
by DrAchoo

Comment:
That's an idea I've been wanting to shoot for some time. You nailed it. Perfect in every way. Congrats on the ribbon!

Tennis is Served
by trnqlty

Comment:
I'm a tennis player and often go out to shoot other hitters. I've ALWAYS wanted to do this shot, but have never sought out the proper place where I could achieve this vantage point. Congrats to you for pulling it off flawlessly! You've nailed it. Perfect ball placement, expression on the face, tons of tension as the racquet is about to snap. Brilliant!

Textures of Rattan
by Tlemetry

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club
by strangeghost

The first three parts of this critique are written based purely on examination of your photo. "Final thoughts" is written after reviewing your score, photographer's comments, and voter comments.

TECHNIQUE
The lighting levels look a little uneven due to the light background appearing through the slats everywhere, especially at the top. Sharpness, focus, depth, all look pretty good. In spite of the fact that it's well focused, it is not an easy image to look at. I know that's pretty subjective, but I can't do much better at the moment. More below.

COMPOSITION
You've chosen an oblique angle to add some interest with lines and angles. Does it work? Yes, to a degree. The colors are bland, and the contrast created by the midtones of the wicker and the light background seem to clash a bit to me. I can't really put my finger on what seems wrong here, but maybe the lack of a clear subject is close to the point. Perhaps if you had gotten closer and created a dramatic and detailed view of a section of wicker, and then let the "landscape" trail off into the distance (but keeping everything in focus) it might have been stronger. As shot, There's nothing to draw my eye or my interest, and the bland colorscape doesn't really invite the eye to explore. If this is a chair, perhaps choosing an area with contour changes would have added some drama.

EMOTIONAL IMPACT
Not much, I'm afraid. It's a decent study of an interesting texture, but it seems to be lacking pizzazz or wow. An unusual shot, technically adequate, but ultimately not very effective.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Well, your voters and commenters were generous. Your final score of 5.5 isn't bad, I might have predicted just a bit lower. People commented on the technicals (as did I) and the fact that it has an abstract quality to it (it does). Good job overall. I enjoyed studying this image for critique.

Purples and Greens
by alfresco

Comment:
I absolutely love this shot. Great use of foreground to add that magic element to a cityscape!

GODZIGMA.jpg
by wavelength

Comment:
Hope it has good IS.

eclipse 3 march 2007
by dreamy

Comment:
Excellent!

Total Lunar Eclipse
by kteach

Comment:
You got Saturn too, brightest star at the top of the photo. Very nice shot!

Choose To L'oeuf, Not Hate, Your Fellow Challengers
by Greetmir

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club
by strangeghost

The first three parts of this critique are written based purely on examination of your photo. "Final thoughts" is written after reviewing your score, photographer's comments, and voter comments.

TECHNIQUE
I can't find any problems with the technicals. It's sharply focused, good contrast, nice flat black background.

COMPOSITION
Hmmm. It's an egg. A little off-centered to make for a more interesting composition, but it just doesn't seem to have any purpose or logic that I can detect. It's a picture of an egg. The questions I normally ask myself when doing a critique, "is there a balance or logic to the comp?" "Is there an evident purpose?" I just don't know. I rechecked the challenge topic, "love." Of what am I to make of a shot of an egg? I really don't get it, I guess.

EMOTIONAL IMPACT
As you might guess, I'm not feeling this one. If there is a message there meant to grab the attention and hold it, I'm not in tune. No real "wow" factor, nothing really unusual in the viewpoint. Not much emotional impact, I'm afraid.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Now, in reading your title, I'm guessing that this image relies on the word play, French to English? Based on your comments, most of those who commented got the drift, since they were taking the title and the image together, which I had not done in my initial comments above (on purpose). Having now done that, I can appreciate it and get a chuckle myself. I likely would have scored this at about a 5, bearing no real connection to the challenge (other than the title) but being a technically adequate shot. Your voters were ruthless, however, a 4.0, le'ouch!

Total Lunar Eclipse 03 MARCH 2007
by Greetmir

Comment:
Absolutely superb. Perfect sense for how to present the event! You should consider making a print available if you've got a high enough res source!

Cloudy Moonset -- Mt. Tam
by GeneralE

Comment:
Sweet shot!!