Shrinkage At 49 Degrees
by Diversq

Comment:
I assume a long exposure with a flash tripped 3 times? Very nice effect!

Me-Myself
by justine

Comment:
Very expressive and wonderfully lit! The dark background at the bottom worried me a little and I think it might have been better with a more uniform background, but this is still a shot to be proud of :) Congrats!

At candle light
by tzsolt

Comment:
Nice effect! Hope you included the f-stop and shutter info... I'll be interested to see them when the challenge is over.

Windows of the Soul
by KING

Comment:
Great use of selective desaturation! Well done

Self Portrait
by Girl from OZ

Comment:
If you were going for the hair in front of your face to give the impression of prison bars, it worked wonderfully... If you weren't going for that, then I have an over active imagination :) Great shot

Oh no... I have HOW LONG to finish planning my wedding!?
by lemming

Comment:
Very expressive... Very artistic... Wonderful job :)

Toronto - Where I work and play
by Morgan

Comment:
Very nice skyscape, but I think you missed the idea behind the challenge. Also I think it would be a better shot if you could have found a way to eliminate the bushes in the foreground without losing the canoe... But that's just me...

On Duty
by JB707

Comment:
The slope of the horizon is very distracting to me. Nice composition otherwise.

Divinity
by magnus

Comment:
~ Critique Club Comment ~

Composition : I don't know if anyone mentioned this, but GREAT job with the framing :) It may or may not have been nice to move a tad to the right so the left side of the Chapel was in frame, but I certainly don't think the shot was hurt by the position you took. The steeple climbing into the frame was a master stroke. Very well done composition!

Exposure / Lighting : I like the exposure very much. The frame has enough detail to peak interest, but fades nicely to a pure black of a "border". Kind of a "Where does the picture end and the frame begin" kind of thing. The Chapel, grass and sky are all nicely exposed as well. Did you have to wait long for those clouds? They really made the shot for me.

Focus : Your choice of aperture gave you nice focus on the dark details of your frame as well as keeping the building well focused. Great job.

Post Processing : The bottom border you added looks so much a part of your natural frame that it gave the illusion of "border or framing?" that many commented on. Well done.

Challenge / Wow : No problem imagining this sitting in the Harvard bookstore. You may even want to print up a few as postcards and see if any local tourist vendors want to sell it.

Great Buddah
by Antithesis

Comment:
~ Critique Club Comment ~

Composition : Extraordinary... The positioning of Buddha's head on the "rule of thirds" grid is achieved with a certain something that makes it look very natural and un-contrived. The rest of the frame is filled with interesting curves and lines. Wonderfully done!

Exposure / Lighting : I think the people that mentioned the lack of light on Buddha's face have a point. That may have been the "little extra" needed to escalate this shot to the top. I have never had the pleasure to visit this site, so I'm not sure if a different time of day would have given you better lighting or not. But if you have an opportunity to spend more time here, you may want to shoot a few at different times of day. Particularly early morning or late afternoon, depending on which direction he is facing.

Focus : Flawless.

Post Processing : Extremely professional looking border. Very well done.

Challenge / Wow : The challenge is certainly nailed here. I could easily imagine this shot on a postcard at a vendor. A slightly better lighting situation would have truly nailed the "wow" as well.

My opinion : Great shot! One very small nitpick and I'm not even certain I'm right... Is the title misspelled? I thought it was "Buddha"... I could be wrong and it doesn't make much difference either way :)