Water Tap
by clickodak

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An appealing image that meets the challenge well.

This is a great example of raking light Marcel, well captured. Without the tap the wall would be good but not as interesting, the angle of the light is really bringing out the texture of the wall. Your composition is good with the tap close to a rule of thirds hotspot and the shadow forming a nice diagonal through the rest of the frame, it's all good. I think you've done the best job you can of what would otherwise be quite a boring subject, well done.

Into the Storm
by riot

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An appealing image that meets the challenge well

Congratulations Eugene for your well deserved blue ribbon. Your image meets the challenge brief in an exemplary very appealing way and no, there is no problem with land as far as I am concerned. What a fascinating cloud structure at both levels made even more appealing with the sun̢۪s dying rays to light it up, it looks beautiful, well captured. I think you chose the right one although the outtakes are also very good.

Thanks for a great entry, keep up the good work.

Storming Sky
by clickodak

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An interesting image that meets the challenges

The plane adds interest to a fairly interesting cloudy sky, I like the varying shades of grey in the mono tones. I need to point out a couple of problems with the plane which is nicely positioned compositionally but it has been over-sharpened, there is a halo around it. Also, a slower shutter speed would have been more pleasing it would have rendered the prop̢۪s motion blur instead of 1 leg sharply caught the way it is.

Thanks Marcel, your entry meets the challenge brief sorry you didn̢۪t get any comments during the challenge, I hope this makes up for it.

Sight seeing
by RyanW

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An appealing image that meets the challenge well

You have captured a great moment that expresses the friendship between these two guys well, with their expansive smiles it makes you want to smile yourself. I like that you have converted it to mono it works really. The DOF is good they are nicely isolated from the background but perhaps an even wider aperture would have reduced the background detail even better. The only thing that mars it in a fairly minor way are the blown highlights on top of their heads.

Thanks for your entry Ryan.

Ad Lunam
by riot

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An interesting image that contributes well to the extended free study

I can understand why you went for this particular composition, yes, it does work well. I particularly like the moon shot with its hazy halo, your blending has worked well, in fact the end result is very convincingly looking like one in-camera shot. Perhaps this may be why the shot hasn't hit the audience in the way you would have liked, though I don't subscribe to the view that the extended rules have to be used in an obvious way.

Anyway regardless, this is still a worthy addition to your Gursky/Ballard portfolio, thank you for your entry Eugene.

Reach For The Skies
by sfalice

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An interesting image that contributes well to the extended free study

Street level skyscraper shots are nearly always effective to show us the world around us in a dramatic imposing way and this is no exception in that respect. However, the mirroring here is both its strength and its weakness. I like the symmetry, the stitched duplication works well for the building itself but not the clouds, such symmetry is spoiling the overall effect, this is certainly the case for the two side panels. I realise that you have deliberately exploited the extended rules with these side panels but for me this and the overexposed sky which forms such a large part of the image spoils the overall end result.

Thanks for your entry Alice.

Emotional Man
by Lydia

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An interesting image that contributes well to the extended free study

Although your image may not appeal to me personally, I have to acknowledge your proficiency in blending the three images together to make a truly unique portrait(s). In fact the level of expertise reveals that this is more than three chance images blended together it shows that you were pursuing a visual goal with each individual image and its contribution to the whole. Yes, certain areas show the difficulties you must have had in producing the end result but you have to be commended for the end result.

Thank you for your unusual entry and the contribution it has made to the challenge, well done Lydia.

Cacophany
by RyanW

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

A mediocre image that meets the challenge at a basic level

This is really quite a confusing image that does not have a strong focal point. The main characters are the two women in the foreground who both have their backs towards us, neither of whom have been caught at a very flattering moment for them especially the lady on the right. The only person whose face we do get to see in full profile is the lady in red who is actively distracted, probably, by her mobile device, she is not engaged with her surroundings. The most dominant element is the gent in the background in the strongly coloured red jumper, your eyes are constantly drawn to him but again he is not of this scene in any constructive way. In the meantime all of this has a dominant foreground white and gold post that does nothing positive to the overall construct.

I rather feel that you have taken too literally the ‘snapshot’ part of the description as opposed to anything that Manet would have been likely to paint. I’m sorry Ryan but I can’t see anything in this he would have been inspired to commit to canvas.

Cool guys, cool colors
by RyanW

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An unappealing image that does not meet the challenge

Well, here you have a street scene of an interrupted image in the taking but we don̢۪t know what has caused the interruption which is often ok because it introduces intrigue but I̢۪m just not feeling that sense of intrigue. The image feels too much like a snapshot, there just doesn̢۪t seem to have been any real thought gone into it. I think the composition may be the reason why, I am just put off by the dominance of that street post that dissects the whole image in two and the sign by it. In what is a predominantly lower key background this high key post just takes over the whole image. As for the challenge itself there is no single strong focal point or key element that reflects the challenge brief effectively enough especially with that post.

Sorry Ryan but I̢۪m afraid this didn̢۪t work for me this time.

Highrise: Gold Flecks
by riot

Comment:
Hello from the critique club

An appealing image that meets the challenge

Even before reading your excellent accompanying notes, thank you, the Gursky influence felt evident in your superb image. The detail is stunning, I can see why you are waxing lyrical about this lovely lens, you have persuaded me to search for one for my own use! I like that you have so patiently and carefully paid such crucial attention to the tiny but important detail that has enabled you to achieve the result in-camera with minimal post processing, this entirely mirrors my own attitude. I just wonder why you had to shoot at such a high ISO? My interpretation from your notes is that you were using a tripod? In which case why not ISO 100 or a much lower one than the chosen one? The subject is static and lends itself fully to a long shutter speed.

Thank you Eugene for a great entry and write-up