blue skies and sunshine
by margiemu

Comment:
I like the idea, but I'd have to brainstorm a bit to see how it could be better pulled off. The flower looks like the rising sun (which is what I think you were going after). One issue is it is far too centered. Zooming back a bit and giving some negative space would be a good idea.

You processing may have cost you a bit too. The yellows look a bit oversaturated and we are losing detail (which is why I think it looks OOF rather than actually being OOF). There also seems to be a halo around the flower perimeter. Finally there is noise in the blue sky (not uncommon at all as the blue channel is the noisiest on digital sensors). Check out Neat Image. There is a free version and after you do the standard use-it-too-much bit, it can be a very helpful tool for noise like that.

Miss Understood
by idnic

Comment:
OK, what's up with not putting the EXIF data down? Great shot for straight from the camera. I bet people rebelled a bit against the front hair being fairly soft due to DOF. The problem, to my eye, is it commands too much of the canvas to be OOF like that. It also is in front of the face where our brain wants things to be nice and sharp. Soft hair behind the face does a better job of framing, etc.

Didn't you see my thread that cyan is the kiss of death on DPC? Apparently not...

Message edited by author 2006-07-10 12:40:37.

The Visitor
by LN13

Comment:
OK, it's our buddy the magnolia again. You can see how the composition changed your score. This is nicely off centered and the petals don't look quite so mangled in the center.

If you used a flash on this, I think I can see a slight blue cast to the picture. The reds of the morning sun are nice though and you chose a good time of the day to shoot. The background is nicely blurred although I would have tried to do something about the horizontal line to the left. It distracts and doesn't help the feel of the picture at all. Either remove whatever it was in composition, or clone it out in processing.

You did nicely to keep the bright petal from blowing completely. The little fly is a nice secondary subject as well.

Midday Magnolia
by LN13

Comment:
Just a few compositional things. 1) It looks a bit too centered. 2) The leaf in the lower right corner is distracting. 3) You may have wanted to monkey with the petals or change your point of view to get more of the heart of the flower. The lighting is nice for no editing.

Another point is playing "the game". If there is a concurrent or has been a recent challenge where there are a zillion entries of one shot (i.e. flowers) your score will suffer from voter fatigue if you use it for another challenge. That has nothing to do with taking good pictures, but is a bit of advice if scoring well is important.

The Inspector
by scalvert

Comment:
Nice to see you up on top again Shannon. Been a while...

Rain, rain, go away ...
by levyj413

Comment:
It's nice to see another Northwester on the site. So, there are a couple issues here, but mostly out of your control. This looks like it was shot at a hotel and a few stories up so you couldn't necessarily a) choose another window which had a different background or b) shoot through the window to get more of your daughter's face.

The worst distraction in the background is actually the pool. It is almost a blown highlight and takes away from any nice feel we get to this picture. The melancholy we are going for is defeated by that large patch of white. The patio furniture isn't too bad because we could make the argument it's setting the scene for what she wishes she was doing instead of being inside. The pool, however, is bad.

I think you did capture enough of her face to get the emotion down. I chose to do this picture through the window to get a full face and to remove any background elements which could distract. Look up my entry for Window Framed called "Rained Out" for almost the exact idea. You can see how I interpreted it.

Composition is nice and focus is reasonably sharp. I didn't see you mention Unsharp Mask in your processing steps. If you didn't use it, it is your friend on this site. Of course you have to learn not to go overboard, but DPC loves sharp.

Big City Lights
by scalvert

Comment:
ya, 7 minutes in, I declare you the winner...

It's bad luck to pick up a coin if it's tails side up.
by Revecca

Comment:
Well, I think the subject is probably what limited you. It looks like you did a very straightforward presentation of what you wanted to present. That's not bad, but it also doesn't give us any "wow". The B&W conversion could have been done a bit better I bet. Look for tutorials (I think we have some here) on B&W conversion techniques. There is so much more that you could do than Mode>Grayscale.

One thing going for the shot is the focus is tack sharp on the coin. That was nicely done and sharpness is very important on this site.

The Swan
by fotomann_forever

Comment:
Leroy, you are a chronic patient. What am I going to do about you? I think you enjoy getting these scores. ;)
We need more naked women grinding metal.

OK, a few things. Personally, I hate shots of kitsch. BUT, this one is pretty well done. In a picture like this I don't think the shallow DOF adds anything so I would have upped the aperture and gone for fully sharp. I see you were already at 0.5 seconds so I assume it was on a tripod. I do love the body of the swan and the swirls as well as the sharpness of the petals there. The rest of the shot is soft (due to DOF I believe). The head also has that swath of highlight which I think makes it look even softer. Sharpen it all up and the score would have improved. Still, you would have been limited by the lack of grannys voting on the site.

Composition and coloring are nicely done.

Sidelines
by pidge

Comment:
It's all due to your tilted horizon. haha, just kidding (but it is slightly tilted). You know, I like this shot, although I would have called it "Sidelined" instead of "Sidelines". That, to me, draws more attention to the subject and his contrast with the players in motion. The composition is nicely balanced with red on both the right and left. The boxy white thing in the back is unfortunate, but what can you do about that? Having an actual soccer ball in the shot would have been a nice touch as well. I would have certainly given this a 6 and maybe a 7 if I was in a good mood.