Outch ! , sad the milk
by leifur

Comment:
Okay, most of the photos that project pain on inanimate objects strike me badly. But the whimsy of this photo and its brilliant execution force me to make a considerable exception in this case. Nice job.

Target of a Cold World
by JPR

Comment:
A pretty photo of an evidently pretty place. The pain element seems a little too subtle.

...
by movieman

Comment:
The pain here is the viewers. Gruesome.

Ouch! The vet's gonna pay for that... [No animals were harmed in making this picture]
by sailracer_98

Comment:
This cat may be the most convincing actor of the lot. And the photo is very nicely taken. It's good humor and cuteness are much more effective at reaching us, I think, than some of the other approaches. Nice.

The Pain of War: One Bullet One Life
by cardmaverick

Comment:
I like political statements in photographs, but I find that the most persuasive ones are the subtle and unargumentative. In this sense the photo is unconvincing. But it is visually strong.

Let Nothing Ever Grieve Thee
by banmorn

Comment:
Guys who look like this are always cast as dumb petty officials - sergeants, sheriffs, and so on. And we are conditioned to believe them incapable of tenderness or pain. Ordinarily this conditioning is so strong that seeing is not believing. Yet in this case the expression of grief seems pretty convincing.

Technically, the photo seems just about ideally realized. The man's face and the flowers express almost all of the full range of values from white to dark gray, leaving just the right gap between the shadows of the subject and the background. Lighting and focus are perfect. This could be the best of the bunch.

(I would have edited out that little pin prick of light halfway between forehead and alstroemeria petal. And I find two or three eyebrow hairs just a little distracting; but these are the merest of trifling quibbles.)

You'll talk!
by nicklevy

Comment:
Stunning photo. Perfect lighing, composition, focus, bokeh.

Forbidden Fruit.
by Nospeak

Comment:
Clever and nicely realized. The highlights on the left side of the apple are 'blown' and I hate gore. The metaphor is very communicative

Farewell Agent Orange?
by Makka

Comment:
I get it, It's a blood orange! The blood is convincing. I know this is an almost ridiculous quibble, but it looks like a cheap knife - one that could not cut through a tomato. And this makes me fear it ever-so-much less. This loss of respect for the instrument causes the photo's impact to unravel quickly. As a rule I hate gore in photos, but the humor - intended or not- makes up for this.

The last sight
by greslizzz

Comment:
Normally I hate grizzly photos; but here there is drammatic tension. The deed has not been done. A powerful and haunting image. The razor sharp focus on the eye instead of the instrument of damage was a good choice and the lighting is just about perfect. Finally, I appreciate being able to see the bottom of the eye through the slot in the blade.