Power Smash
by zerocusa

Comment:
It's rare I care for a sports action photograph. But this is indeed a rare one. It's superb. His astounding bodily contortion, combined with the focus of his attention, is fabulous. Badminton is truly the martial art of racquet sports. 8.

Locked
by homens

Comment:
I don't entirely understand it. That's a plus, as far as I'm concerned. It's graphically striking, and the colours are beautiful, as if organic ... like some rare stone polished by time. 7.

Cobus, My Son.
by docpjv

Comment:
I remember Cobus from several years ago, Doc. I don't recall seeing him then, but this is exactly how I imagined he would be. Strong and soft. Powerful and vulnerable. A deep soul. It's a very fine portrait of a complex man. 8.

Straight on my way
by ladibug

Comment:
A very beautiful, transcendent vision. All is uncertain and ambiguous, but for the clear voice of the direction marker. It's one of those rare images that, like good blues music, is more about the mood and emotion than it is about the specifics. Like the whole is so much more than the sum of its parts. 8.

Stern
by jay6850

Comment:
Superb. Lots of Henry Fonda, which is apt because it's a wonderfully theatrical portrait in terms of lighting, positioning and his orientation not for the camera, but for some unseen, probably imaginary audience. 8.

Father & Son
by philcozz

Comment:
All that repetition, all those related shapes of lights, railcars, windows; all replicas of each other. And a father and son. That's just right! 8.

BW Me 2
by ScooterMcNutty

Comment:
Yes. That is what I was trying to say. And the reason I used the word 'reductive' to describe it is because it is more usual for people of your age to want to do the opposite; to elaborate and embellish (clothes, piercing, tattoos, gestures, all that stuff). No so many feel secure enough to depict themselves so frankly, without all those props. So I congratulate you both on the lovely photograph and the confident self-image. I was an idiot when I was 15. I'd have done all the stuff Jason mentioned. Probably worse than that. Of course, I was also a guy.

by nixter

Comment:
When you're a child, moments sometimes seem to last longer. Seconds, minutes, hours, forever.
Sublime moment, Nick.

Life Unpretty
by RKT

Comment:

Originally posted by undieyatch: ... "Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

Yes.

Apocalyptica
by cmtc

Comment:
cytoxan is quite correct; I am a lot older than you and so there's likely to be a communication gap between us. I gave it a 5, which is well above average for me (my average in this challenge was about 4.0 I think). My comment during voting was that it is a nicely-made photograph but of no apparent substance beyond that. Tattoo + armpit + gas mask ... presumably it's a combination that must mean something? Unless of course its point is to not have one. Alas, nobody (including you) has given we crusty old dudes any hint as to its meaning. Nevertheless, it was well inside my top 20% in the challenge.