IMG_3670o.jpg
by tenfrozentoes

Comment:
Very effective use of elements to put together a captivating photo here. The sun flare is the finishing touch. Well done!

fallcolor1.jpg
by vikas

Comment:
I hope you fixed that fence after getting your shot. :P I like the layers and the vibrant colors.

MORNING WINE
by vikas

Comment:
Wonderful use of DOF to tell a story here. Great craftmanship of an enticing photo! Nice.

Drive.jpg
by vikas

Comment:
Such a simple, serene setting, yet engaging and full of color. This just invites the viewer in for more. Nice capture!

EC1_5733.jpg
by Mal37

Comment:
Something about this I really like but can't put my finger on. The colors are nice, the stone formations are cool...hmmm. Well, anyway, I like it. :P

Bet you had a hard time figuring out the angles to take this from?

Floating Crab
by Gunnsi

Comment:
Interesting subject. Could be a little sharper.

Keeping Watch
by rjkstesch

Comment:
Nice rich green and complimentary beige/tan colors. Seems a bit underexposed.

IMG_0364.jpg
by strangeghost

Comment:
Wow! That's a large group of birds. Would be cool to get setup in a blind near there and wait. What lens did you use for this?

The Candidates
by ajfan

Comment:
ewwwww - Democrats!

Bet you can't do this~
by KIM986

Comment:
Great catch! This is a fun photo to look at. The water indentations are very cool.

I took a peek at the cropped version of this and have to say that I think the composition is actually stronger with the leaf than without. The leaf adds a sense of scale and context. Additionally, as you pointed out in your notes on the cropped version, you do get more noise taking away more pixels. Some NI (neat image - software noise reduction program) could help clean up the noise on the bug, even in this non-cropped version.

It seems that your focal point was hitting on the actual water marks and not the bug. You haven't filled in the aperture/shutter/iso sections of the photo info...I'm guessing it was shallow (F2.8 to 3.5?). If you had the focus on the bug's back or head, with F8 or so aperture (maybe even F5.6), you would have the bug and the water in focus with slight blurring of the leaf.

Just some observations. :) BTW, I like the way you vote! ;P