Home on the Range
by mullany1957

Comment:
What did I mis?? I thought this was a winner. I wish I had given it a 10 instead of a nine,

Game Over
by jmsetzler

Comment:
Again, my favorites down in the pack.

Liquid Reaction
by davidbell

Comment:
interesting idea but composition is not captivating

Sapphire & Sprite
by Diversq

Comment:
very dark on my monitor

#244: Surf N' Blue
by carolee

Comment:
great colors, great background but composition could be more interesting 7

Interior Building
by britesantos

Comment:
nice - and I've never marked down for being off challange before but why do you think this fits?

Diagonal Honey
by dasser

Comment:
wonderful abstract

Joy to the World!
by kimmer86

Comment:
as in dish soap?

Coffee with Milk
by STEINR

Comment:
ooohh - nice but why cut off the handle?

Fanfare
by kavamama

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club- I like to day a couple of days to think about a photo before I review it.

What a great start for your first entry! 20th place is impressive and so is a score of 6. Unfortuneately I was one of those "middle of the pack" voters. I gave you a six.

I'll start with the good stuff. Exquisite focus, just lovely depth of field. All of the flower is in tight focus and the background green is blurred. The petals protuding in the center are just as sharp as those behind and the fuzzy pollen laden stamens (or is it pistons?). Great colors, very subtle but well balanced yellows and purples. Perfect lighting! soft and again subtle, feels like early morning fresh. Nice interplay of texture and pattern. The smooth center petals contrast with the busy spots of the outer petals and the bright yellow pollen. The weight is right too, the heavier darker, busier elements of the photo are near the bottom and the lighter, airier lavendar petals are at the top.

And then the bad stuff - this is what separates a good photo from a great one. Your composition is pretty basic, a straight on shot with the object of interest in the middle of the frame. You have only one center of interest and all the leading lines point there. This shot is perhaps too symetrical to forgive the slight assymetries. Why is the top petal cut off? Would a more square format have suited the flower better than the standard rectangle? What if you rotated it ever so slightly so that the lower petals were at the same angle?

Or better yet...what if you had abandoned the symetry altogether. Have you read the tutorial on the rule of thirds. All rules are meant to be broken, but also they are meant to be mastered. Would the flower have been more dramatic and less static if it had been placed off center in the frame? taken from an angle? had a more (or less) contrasty background.

In the DPC lingo, you need something more to take this from "nice" to "WOW".

Disclaimer: remember that this is only my opinion and I an NOT an expert.