The Royals
by airatic

Comment:
hope you're getting enough comments on this. if your score isn't where you would like it to be, you might want to read this thread

Nosey Elephant
by Adventurita

Comment:
very interesting perspective you've shot here. i never really knew what the underside of a trunk--thank goodness for the candid challenge to come along and provide me this opportunity ;-)

"Tabby"
by mandyturner

Comment:
this would be getting killed because of composition, pose, expression, and possibly lighting. she has taken herself out of the image, which, consequently, takes the viewers out with her. cropped from just below the chin up, and with her chin slightly turned towards the camera, and you'd probably see a full point improvement in your score. she's made up well and has nice eyes; there's potential here, just not in this challenge.

well traveled
by mandyturner

Comment:
what could you have done differently here? well, for one, you could have taken advantage of the expanded size ;-)

next, you could have zoomed in more to capture the contrasting textures between the smooth and the cracked parts of the tire. next, you could have framed the image to make it easier to identify what the object was while making it more of a macro. lastly, you could have used advanced editing techniques to make the image pop more.

just a friend
by mandyturner

Comment:
technically, i have no problems with this image. it's in focus. but, does it do anything for me? a portrait of a doll. other than that, there's nothing to keep me looking at it...

little yellow riding hood
by mandyturner

Comment:
nice lines, nice feel, and nice processing. a little soft, but all the same, it works. you were probably penalized for the blowouts, but that's just a dpc thing. in real life, almost every photo you'll ever see in a magazine or billboard has blowouts.

this obviously met the challenge and connected with the viewers--that's what you need to do. use this as your bench mark. when you go out to shoot for a challenge, ask yourself how can you use this awesome tool you have to produce an image that will connect you with more viewers in a positive manner?

Together...
by mandyturner

Comment:
too close in, lighting is too strong. not enough of the image to tell any story that would engage the viewer.

Smoke Break
by mandyturner

Comment:
this type of shot has potential, but i think the editing could use a little work. maybe you cropped in just a bit too tight? this probably could have used a simple black border, as well. focus is a little soft, could have used a little usm.

ok, you've got a killer camera, and yes, it does have a learning curve. and, it also puts more responsibility on you to do more work in post-processing. you have moved very far from shore with this, and it's a good thing, and you CAN make it a great thing--BUT, it is not automatic. you are going to have to dig in and work with it. you have what it takes, but don't get all wound up because it takes work. just dig in and do it.

Beagles in a Barrel
by mandyturner

Comment:
this would have been helped with a tighter crop that would have let the viewer become more engaged with those soleful eyes. also, even though you were low, i don't think you were low enough. for some reason, photos of animals and children seem more interesting when shot at or just below their eye-level.

i would encourage you to REALLY PRACTICE shooting without looking through the viewfinder. get used to holding the camera down to the ground or over your head, pointing it towards your subject. yeah, a lot of shots don't come out, but the ones that do are usually a lot more interesting...

Splinter
by mandyturner

Comment:
dof makes this a bit too abstract. the lighting on the right is a bit too strong. as an entry, this comes across as though you found something broken and zoomed in on it. you got to close to it for the viewer to get anything from it that would keep their attention.

as a side note, challenge entries are not counted towards your portfolio space, you should be submitting entries as large as possible, at least 640px on the longest side (this is 550), and as close to 150kb as possible.