Surprise! -- October Snow
by JuliBoc

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

Beautiful view. Wish I had one like this. :)
There really is nothing wrong with this image - the focus is excellent, the composition works, DOF good for subject, color/tones excellent. Your score and placement reflect that.

For the most part, your composition works. The frame is cut in half by the lake but the trees on the left pull it together to keep it from seeming that way. Excellent use of the trees to accomplish that. The lines of the snow and water lead me into the center of the image - great work in that respect also.

But (don't you hate that word?), to push this image over the top, you need to show the viewer something. Anything. This image tells me nothing really about the photographer so I don't connect with that, and there is nothing that stands out in the image except the pine branches with which I also don't connect. A landscape without a focal point needs something more than just landscape - vibrant colors work as do a more dynamic sky.

This is a good, solid image. And with access to a view like this year round, I can see higher scores in your future. Welcome to DPC!

Waiting
by marcellieb

Comment:
you could crop the right half of this image and not lose anything. In fact, I think it would dramatically improve it. And the noticibility of the bokeh would be stronger. 6

Time to relax
by parallax

Comment:
Excellent image. Light a little harsh coming from right side but very well taken. 7

Discovering Fall
by jenesis

Comment:
good sharp portrait, good bokeh. Lighting works very well. Tones/hues excellent 8

Brilliant Star
by anaheimca89

Comment:
rhis is so in-your-face centered I can't decide if I like it or not. On the one hand, the image feels static; on the other, it gives the flower a defiant air as if its conscious of itself. Something to contemplate. The bokeh works for me - it does make the subject stand out.

the last vine
by dragonlady

Comment:
this works for me but I'm partial to monochromes/duotones. Focus is well done, composition excellent.

Dawn
by Ann

Comment:
There's not a lot of detail in the out of focus area to create really good bokeh. But there is some. I like the way the subject looks like its bowing. Emotive piece, not sure if I want the horizon in it or not. Last thoughts: For a bokeh challenge, not all that strong but for me, works on emotional level.

Flame on Fall!
by MrsKitty

Comment:
Wow. This one is cropped perfectly for an optical illusion. Took me a ocuple of seconds to separate the leaf from the background. Interesting. Atisticaly this doesn't hold my attention - there is no emotional impact for me beyond the first couple seconds. But, conceptually this image really works; I'll concider it an abstract. 7 - good luck in the challenge!

Lone Flower
by whiteflyer

Comment:
The Bokeh here is nice. However, for me, it doesn't match the subject. I think it is the colors that seem to fight against each other - the warm, earthy tones of the background just don't seem to work with the cool, electric color of the flower. The image is cropped tightly on the right, a little too tightly, to justify all the space on the left. The subject is perfectly sharp and the lighting of the subject is well done.

Red Reflection in Deerfield River
by jswaldron

Comment:
picture contains bokeh with great color. I wonder though, at having the 'subject' be a dirty brown lake bottom. Hmmm... For me, the subject will be the bokeh itself. Not really with the 'spirit' of the challenge but it works for me. So I'll call this an interesting abstract that manages to hold my attention waiting for the ripples to clear.