Bouncing Blues
by doc_gonzo

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

Interesting image. Lava lamps are so much fun to watch. I like the colours, the purple globs, the gold outline. I also like it that the background works both as a background and as a frame.

I think the exposure is right on for what you seeminly wanted to achieve. It was a wise decision to use a tripod, because at 1/5 of a second, handheld would not have worked. The colours are beautiful, quite rich, and the black is deep. I like the specks, they add life to the whole thing. I'm not sure how you processed this, but one thing that might help a bit is to sharpen the image a tad - the bubbles look a bit soft.

As for the challenge, it meets the challenge in that there are bubbles in the image. It might be that not everybody recognizes these as bubbles though, especially during voting, when images only get a few seconds viewing from each voter. The image doesn't really "sell" the idea of bubbles, in other words, it doesn't scream, "bubbles!"

Overall, a pleasing image, but it could be a bit sharper. A good entry to the challenge, but without selling the concept.

I hope this helps. If you have questions, complaints, comments, feel free to contact me.

~Ursula

Chemistry
by cwalmye

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

I am not sure what I can tell you about this image. I wish there were something in your notes about what you were thinking when you made the image, and why you decided to enter it to the challenge.

I also am not sure what I'm looking at.

From a technical point of view, the exposure seems adequate. The choice of shallow DOF works allright. The B/W conversion is also just fine.

It meets the challenge, in that it has bubbles in it. It doesn't sell the concept of bubbles.

Overall, this is a somewhat puzzling entry. It doesn't have a large amount of visual appeal. Like one of your commenters puts it, it's simple, not cluttered, but doesn't pop.

Gemma
by alwaysRED

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

Your photographer's comments are spot on. This is a beautiful image, but not a high impact image. It is a good pet candid. You are right that the tail is distracting, as are the dirt specks on the face. The colours are quite beautiful, and the bokeh is soft and delicious. She really is cute!

So .... I am not sure what more I can add here :)

It meets the challenge, it follows the rule of thirds.

It likely would benefit from a bit higher contrast (sligh curves adjustment). It likely would also benefit from a slightly warmer tone overall, as Larus mentions in your comments. The focus is OK, but the eyes could be a little sharper.

FWIW, I would have voted it a 6 or a 7.

I hope this helps. If you have any questions, concerns, complaints, feel free to contact me.

~Ursula

Stems and Blooms
by drbenjamin

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

First of all, reading through your comments made me laugh! "Ursular"? That's funny. Anyway. I am the real "ursula" here :)

Second, congratulations on making it through your first ever challenge!

About the image. Overall, I think it is a beautiful "abstract". The muted, yet bright, colour scheme is quite eye-catching. You say these are stems in water? It looks almost more like stems outside on a sunny day.

Your use of F2.8 with the macro lens certainly aided the overall dreamy feel of the image. It is always difficult to tell whether you intended to have the focus where it is, but it looks spot on for what it is - the stems that are clear are nicely defined without being oversharp, the rest is a pleasant out of focus hint of other stems and either a leaf or a flower.

The composition is quite good. I might consider leaving a bit less space to the right (move the stems a bit closer to the edge). I'd also try to not get any "intrusions" such as the little tiny bit of stem at the bottom left.

Processing, in my opinion it's beautiful as it is. You could have worked at creating greater contrast, but it's a matter of choice, how you want to present your image. I do like the colour combination, so similar throughout, yet the stems are quite distinct.

As for meeting the challenge, it does follow a thirds division; however, it doesn't yell rule of thirds, and that might have hurt your score. As for your score, this is not the kind of image that has a huge impact at first glance, and in the challenges that is what you need, immediate impact. That hurt your score also.

Overall this is a very pleasing image, a good study in colours and lines and shallow DOF. I hope this helps :)

If you have any questions, comments, complaints, please feel free to contact me.

~Ursula

A Little Summer
by Boldgraphy

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

First of all, welcome to DPChallenge, and congratulations on completing your first challenge.

What I like about the image:

I like the idea, bubbles, strawberries, warm colours, Summer. I like the shine of the bubbles, and the little bit of detail on the strawberry. I like the closeup view.

Challenge:

It meets the challenge topic, there are bubbles in your image. I would say that it maybe doesn't meet it head on, in the sense that, even though there are bubbles in the image, what you're "selling" is the idea of summer fun, not bubbles.

Technicals:

Your choice of F22 @ 1 second is a bit baffling to me. F22 will give you great depht of field, yet, you seem to have focused right in front of the glass, losing a lot of definition towards the straw and further back. 1 second is a bit slow I think for bubbles. I am not sure, but I would suggest going more something like F11 @ 4/10 of a second or so, and focus a bit further back. Something to try at least.

The light seems bright from the sides, maybe a smidgeon too bright. Maybe it would be worth it to try using the 2 flash units, one from the side, the other from a different place, maybe bouncing off a reflector for overall illumination.

Overall:

A good concept and a pretty good start for DPC, few of us start at 5.5. Keep going!

If you have any questions, complaints, comments, feel free to contact me. Take care,

~Ursula

Bubbles and Bubbles and More Bubbles
by JLC

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

What I like about the image:

The sky is a beautiful blue, and the cloud gives it depth. The bubbles have a nice shine and really look like they're floating upwards, into the sky.

Challenge:

It definitely meets the challenge. No problems there.

Presentation:

This is where the image suffers most. The presentation is nice, but rather bland, not a whole lot going on. I think that either you'd need a lot more bubbles (like your commenter suggests below), or some context, where are the bubbles coming from, a person blowing them, something of that sort. Something to tell the story better.

Technicals:

I think your choice of shutter speed/aperture is quite adequate for the image, I'm wondering if a lower ISO might have helped reduce some of the grain (although then you'd have to adjust the shutter/aperture combo). A couple of the bubbles look to be a tad out of focus. In a shot like this, it would be best to have all the bubbles in focus.

Post-processing:

Deepening the shadows a little was a good idea. You could also try lightening the bright areas, to give it even more depth. The bubbles are getting lost in the sky. Somehow you need to define them better, so that they stand out better against all that blue. I'd suggest trying to adjust curves for this.

I hope this helps. If you have any questions, comments, complaints, feel free to contact me.

~Ursula

B&W - Day 4
by mk

Comment:

Originally posted by mk: Originally posted by ursula: May I suggest a slightly different crop? Oh, yes. You win!

What did I win? :)))))

__
by undieyatch

Comment:
I like this shot, quite a bit. My very picky mind keeps thinking, I wish the camera would have been moved just a smidgeon upwards, to show just a bit more of the of the leaf itself, a tiny bit less of the stem (but, without trying it, there's no way to be sure). I like the repetition in the light/shadows in the background. I think that possibly the leaf itself could have been dodged a bit (lightened or brightened up a tad) to make it pop. Good work!

Day Three: Cursed
by Art Roflmao

Comment:
He, he, stone and water. Funny shot. B/W works here :)

B&W - Day 4
by mk

Comment:
I kinda like that mess at the bottom. May I suggest a slightly different crop?





Message edited by author 2007-05-04 13:36:50.