Shades of Purple
by blemt

Comment:
A Comment From The Critique Club

Hi Clara!

It seems I get to critique all the images this week that are taken close to where I live ... I'm in Northern Virginia. And I'm a big fan of the Cherry Blossoms even though I didn't get to go this year. You captured one of the quintessential images, the framing of the Jefferson Memorial by the cherry blossoms is fantastic. This is one of the images where placing your subject in the center actually works well because the surroundings are so interesting, too. Dusk was also a good time to capture this, the sky and its reflection in the Tidal Basin are mimicking the colors of the blossoms beautifully.

I feel that the image is a little over-saturated, the blossoms are too red, and especially in parts of the sky and the reflection, the colors appear a little blotchy to me as if you only increased saturation for red. I would also like to see a larger photo (you can go up to 640 px on the long side) because that would likely make more detail in the flowers visible. [Edit: I usually only read the comments you get after writing my comments, and I guess I didn't tell you anything new here, sorry.]

Irrespective of that, you took a stunning photo that fit the color challenge really well and was well liked by most of the voters judging by the well-deserved rating you got. If you ever decide to become a member, you should consider making this available as a print, I think it's very sellable.

Welcome to the site, I'm looking forward to seeing many more great submissions from you :)

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments about this review.

Franziska.

Illuminated
by paganini

Comment:
Strikingly beautiful :)

Sunset at The Lake
by jeremycole

Comment:
A Comment From The Critique Club

Hi Jeremy,

I'm lucky because I get to write a comment on your beautiful sunset photo, and one at a lake to boot ... I love water :) Your photo makes me feel of relaxed warm summer weekend or vacation days where you just sit and enjoy. :)

You mentioned in your description that you followed the ROT and I think that was a good choice here. The swirling clouds in the sky are very pretty and needed to be shown off, and the sun is placed nicely, letting the eye wander around the sky and the lake and still find a resting spot. The reflection of the sun on the water also adds to the photo.

I am drawn a little to those objects on (above?) the water to the right, I think it must be shallow water with some old tree branches sticking out? Whatever it is, it's distracting, but nothing you could do about it without totally taking another photo. I would probably try and clone those out now that the challenge is over.

Technically, this is great, the sun is a little blown out, but that's what suns are so it's not a distraction and you have a nice tonal range throughout the photo, with nice soft colors. And that's I think where you lost out on a higher score. This is a beautiful shot, but not one that "shouts color", even though the color of the sky and its reflection on the lake are an integral part. For DPC, it pays to be obvious, and a lot of the top photos were in brighter, bolder colors. Boosting the saturation a bit (as was suggested in some of the comments) could have helped that a bit, but I suspect it wouldn't necessarily be the sunset anymore you drove so far to see.

You should get a print of this and hang it on your wall to remind you of that nice summer evening.

I'm looking forward to seeing many more good photos from you in the challenges :)

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments about this review.

Franziska.

Symphony In F Major
by jmsetzler

Comment:
John, what a compliment, thanks :) As always, you've picked a technique and made it look easy and the result is stunning as usual :)

Message edited by author 2003-04-15 16:19:09.

Spring
by bioshore

Comment:
A Comment From The Critique Club

Hi Mitchell,

Spring is my favorite time here (I'm in Virginia, so not that far away from where you took this picture), and I especially love the cherry trees in bloom. They are a spectacular sight and a great choice for the color challenge. I like how you have placed the tree to the left of your photo, and how it dwarfs the person walking.

You have a scene that has a lot of potential for a great shot here, did you take photos from some other angles and distances? For the challenge, I think you lost out on a higher rating because the color didn't fill the frame (I've heard a couple of photographer teach: If you think you are close enough to your subject, move in closer) and the colors (especially those except the tree) are a little muted from the overcast weather. The overblown sky (which is impossible to avoid on an overcast day) should be minimized if you can't eliminate it altogether, so a crop on the right would probably have helped without losing any important information.

Technically, you did fine with this photo. I always say that no obvious signs of post-processing is a good thing. Also, for DPC, it is always advisable to submit photos as large as possible. I don't know whether you cropped your entry out of a bigger file and weren't able to submit a bigger size, but if you were able to, using the maximum size allowed (640 pixels on the long side) is usually a good thing.

If you have the time and inclination, I would suggest going back to the park, and start taking pictures of the same tree but vary your angle and your distances. Play around with the reflections in the water some to see what you can come up with. Photograph only part of the tree. See what the background is like if you take a shot of the tree from the other side, etc.

Anyhow, I just checked out your web page and you have some incredible images there. I also really liked your winter leaf. I'm looking forward to seeing more great photos from you in the future competitions :)

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments about this review.

Franziska

My Shadow and I
by FranziskaLang

Comment:
Entry deleted - I meant to add it to the photo, not comment on my own one :-P

Message edited by author 2003-04-12 15:16:40.

Radial Beauty
by indigo997

Comment:
A Comment From The Critique Club

Hi Nancy,

my first impression (maybe contrary to some other people's reaction was "yeeeh, a flower shot". :) I love them, especially if they are done well, like yours is.

For this challenge, the centered placement works really well and focuses the viewer right where he/she needs to be focused. I was very intrigued by the background that you used, those seem to be dried flower petals? Nice idea, and it works here. I like them especially in the top part of the picture where they are just a little blurry and more separated from the main flower, in the foreground everything is in focus (providing less separation between background and subject) and I don't think that could've been avoided unless you reshot this from straight above and really closely controlled your DOF. Might be worth a try if you're in the mood ...

I do like that you managed to get the whole flower in focus, even though I'm surprised that was possible with such a small aperture. Your lighting is also excellent, it is pretty even throughout the photo and there are no visible shadows. The soft, muted colors are nice here, but I suspect that bright and bold colors make for a more instant "wow-effect" to the speed-voter and that might have affected the votes and comments (or lack thereof) you got.

Your post-processing was also good, there are no visible signs of it (always what you want to achieve) and the border goes well with the photo.

I think the voters mostly agree with me in their comments that separating the background a little more from the flower would be an improvement, but that the lighting and detail in the flower is great. I like the shot and look forward to seeing more flowers from you :)

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments about this review.

Franziska.

Just a dumbell
by kiwiness

Comment:
Wonderful shot, congrats on your ribbon :)

Melbourne Skyline
by Gordon

Comment:
Simply fantastic, well deserved ribbon!

Almost Holy
by Konador

Comment:
Wohoo, congrats!!! :)