Flirting With Danger
by die2board

Comment:
Love the colors, lighting, and composition. Bumping to a 10

Jump
by ergates

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club,

I like the action of this image a lot and I gave you a 5. By the comments you received, you have a good understanding why the image scored as low as it did. By your comments, I understand that the effect was intentional. What I don̢۪t understand is if the blur was from post processing or from moving your camera when you shot the photo. I̢۪m thinking it was a bit of both but I̢۪m really not sure. I do agree that you could crop a little off the right side, as the composition would be stronger if the child wasn̢۪t centered in the image.

Food for thought, you might want to use a slow shutter speed and pan with the subject if you decide to shot another image like this one. This would still produce the moving dynamics in the background that you desire yet provide the in focus area the voters desire.

Send me a PM if you have any questions regarding this critique.

Tim

Let's Draw The World!
by inutza

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club:

This was a very interesting concept for the Bits and Pieces challenge; however it was a bit risky, as voters could easily think that it wasn't done with basic editing if they didn't take the time to see that it was validated. In general, there are a couple of technical things that would have made this image stronger. First, the wide-angle perspective of the background image makes it look like the horizon isn't level. This could have been fixed prior to printing the image. Second, you might want to reduce the noise in the background image a bit. The noise doesn't match the sharpness of the chalk, which weakens the effect you were trying to achieve. Lastly, the child's toy directly behind the chalk looks like it should have better focus considering how close to the chalk it is located. I'm not sure how difficult it would have been to clone this out before printing but it would have been worth the effort.

Tim

Was it all worth it ? - Doroty gets to the end
by mcaldo

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club:

For what it is worth, I rated this image a 6. In general I rate images on the premise that out of the box entries meet the challenge and then rate the photo as to how well you executed your idea. However, your subject was a little weak on action and your scored suffered from such by the voters overall.

I thought that this image was a great subject choice for B&W. The shades of gray in the wood enhance the textured feel of this image. I do somewhat disagree with you regarding the lady being there. I found that she helped me understand that there were pathways between the fences and helped provide depth to the image. As for the B&W conversion, I very surprised how well your camera does B&W; however, I agree with that more contrast is needed in Dorothy's clothes. You might want to consider shooting in color next time and doing your B&W conversion in post processing. This link is an excellent tutorial on B&W conversion and is easy to use. I think if you give it a try you will see that you will not have to dodge and burn as often.

DPC B&W Tutorial

Tim

Chew Toy Portrait
by TheStick

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club:

For what it is worth, I rated this image a 6. I thought that your photo met the challenge and showed you have a good grasp of the technical aspects of photography. Your score suffered in this challenge not for any blatant shortcomings of the image but for the same reason mine did, the voters didn't relate your subject as Bits & Pieces. As noted in your comment section, the toy was pretty new and your score could have suffered some because the toy didn't look like a pet did the damage. Either way, the fact that the winning image scored less than a 7 indicates that people voted this challenge lower and everyone's scored suffered for it.

Tim

Seedhead
by lwiley212

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club.

I didn̢۪t vote on the Zen challenge so this is the first time for me to see your image. I like the colors of this photo, the blue is very pleasing and the browns and greens of the grass compliment the blue very well. It might have been possible with different post processing to bring out the color of the flower more but I̢۪m willing to bet that you would blow out some of the highlights in the grass and that would not be worth it. The texture of the grass is too powerful in this image to risk sacrificing. Overall this is a very nice image that I would be proud to have in my portfolio if I had taken it. From your score I would guess that many of the voters didn̢۪t see the Zen in this image and some of your comments indicate that. This was a tough topic to shoot and I think you put forth a very noble effort.

Tim

Think "Color"
by FocusPoint

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club:

Obviously from the make of your camera, the voters had no idea what Zen is or ever will be (Just kidding). Your own comments state that you don̢۪t know what Zen is and obviously the voters didn̢۪t think this vase was the answer. The trouble is that I don̢۪t know what Zen is either. I didn̢۪t vote in this challenge so it is a treat for me to review your image. I think on the technical merits your image is very strong. One commenter mentioned the uneven lighting in the background as drawing their attention away. My opinion is that the negative space to the right of the vase would not have worked without the graduated light. Yes it did draw my eyes to the right of the image but the flow of the transition between the dark and the light areas of the background kept bringing my eyes back to the vase. I really like this image and I would be proud if I were you to have it in my portfolio.

Tim

Looking back in time...
by MelGilligan

Comment:
Back to comment. You made a minor mistake with this image by focusing on the mirror instead of the object in the mirror. Since the object in the mirror is the main subject of the photo, being out of focus is going to hurt your score considerably.

Solitary Kyak
by notesinstones

Comment:
To be honest, I like the subject matte of this image a lot but I totally hate the lens glare.

Music Transportation
by MrXpress

Comment:
Back to comment. I'm afraid your score will suffer on this image because the subject matter is not the strongest for a Transportation challenge. Technically this photo is pretty well done. The headset does blend into the background a bit at the bottom of the image and the bright spot at the bottom left is distracting. You might want to try cropping the bottom part of the image until the bright spot dissappears.