Yes, I have done my 30 minutes of practice!!
by Shrink

Comment:
Love the expression.. I'm sure many parents see that every day as their kids are practicing!

Virtuoso
by md8speed

Comment:
I like the square crop with the diagonal clarinet... nice lighting too.

What key is it?
by clixographer

Comment:
Completely lost the lines between the keys in the blown out area, but it's a nice perspective and I like how you captured a lot of keys in the shot.

Wind Instruments
by vzegarski

Comment:
Wind instruments? Aren't those clarinets, flutes and saxes? Either way, nice tones, but just a bit too blown out on the highlights. Wish the background had less wrinkles in it too. This is one of those shots that just needed a few small details ironed out (no pun intended) to be one of the top contenders.

Hey Mr. D.J
by Ubersteiny

Comment:
Great symmetry in the silhouette and I like the lighting, wish the background was a bit smoother though.

7th Grade Piano - It's Just a Blur Now
by LN13

Comment:
Now THAT is shallow! The edges of the keys seem a bit jagged, but overall this is a creative shot with a nice composition.

A melody of joy
by birkin

Comment:
I like the unique perspective here!

Key Notes
by susanh

Comment:
Nice reflections and lighting, but the overall composition seems a bit boring... perhaps a bit more of a tilt to the instrument?

Cool Joe
by FocusPoint

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club!

Well, I'm one of only 4 people who commented on this one during the challenge, and I was randomly given this shot for the CC too. But, I guess feedback mostly from one person, is better than none at all!

As I said before, and someone else noted, I like the use of reflections here to help fill in the facial features. But, I think most people probably didn't take the time to look that closely. They probably saw cup of coffee with sunglasses on laptop... weren't really interested, and moved on.

I think you hit on two important points in your Photographer's Comments. Is this personification? I'm not sure. I wasn't when I voted either. There were a bunch of shots where items were placed together to look like a person, but really, a coffee mug has no personable qualitites to it. It's only when it's put all together that it makes a person.

Next, you mentioned the technical qualities of the photo. While I appreciate the setup with the neat reflections, it seems that it was almost a lucky fluke instead of a preplanned part of the shot. The rest of the shot is cluttered and not well planned. Had you put this against a solid black background, with a more dramatic lighting... people probably would have taken notice to the deliberate setup involved and (if it had been well done) voted it higher. The shot is also a little soft or even blurry?

So, all in all, I think you answered your own question about why this scored as low as it did. I've just given a bit more clarification to all of it.

If you have any questions, please feel free to PM me.

24/01/2007
by talj

Comment:
In doing my photo a week project, I posted a few shots that were puzzles... guess the photo. This shot is perfect for something like that! It's got great textures and lines. Very simple, yet very cool! Goes really well with the entire series!