Zanzibar
by tinkie2010

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

I quite like this shot, my own entry for this challenge was quite askew too, if you want to take a look :-) However, here you have both a level horizon, and then a tilted foreground element. It's quite a difficult call unless you could find a way to frame the shot with an exact parallel to the horizon; as it stands it does give a little bit of a swaying feeling.
From your settings I would say you shot handheld.

Most commenters like the basic idea here, but the execution needs more work. This would have been a good time to bring along a tripod, then you would be able to look at the scene through the viewfinder and figure out ways to line everything up. It would also allow you to close down a bit and leave the shutter open, which would help to naturally saturate the shot with more colour.

Hope this critique helps, the only way to improve is to continue to shoot.

Feel free to PM me with any questions,

Susan

Majesty
by Drake

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

To quote someone famous, Ah feel yer pain. This flat grey winter sky we get is capable of giving a dull, boring cast to even the most dynamic subject, and I can see the eagle starting to lower into that half-crouch and lift its wings. It would be great to see if you got any shots following this one of the bird in flight. Too bad these birds like coastal areas, where murky skies are often the norm!

Technically, I would have cropped out a little more on the bottom, and the right, so the eagle wouldn't be so centred, and done a little cloning to remove the pine needles sprouting from the head. I do agree to an extent that more pp could have made the image pop a little more, but on the other hand you don't want to go overboard.

Otherwise, a very decent shot considering the light you had to work with. Keep up the good work!

Feel free to PM me with any questions,

Susan

Nature's Flow
by DigiFotoBuddy

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

Very interesting and unusual shot, I would be curious to see a more detailed breakdown as to how you put this together with the multiple captures.

I do agree with some comments about the right side of the image being a little blah. However, difficult to adjust the natural layout of the stream, unless you are able to cross it and/or get in the middle of it. I've seen it happen! The ambient light is nicely filtered in, and the settings are perfect for such a shot. The water creates a flowing silky leading line to the viewer and plenty of dof is evident by the size of the rocks and foliage visible.

Artistically I like the shot, but would have tried to bump up the colours a bit more to give it some punch. Advanced Editing allows for a fair bit of leeway, don't be afraid to exploit it!

Feel free to PM me with any questions,

Susan

The Old Head
by aber

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

Artistically this is a very pleasing shot, with the curving coastline, sunset and horizon relatively high. I like the softness of the water contrasting with the edges of the cliffs. Technically there is little wrong with it, your settings are perfect for a landscape/seascape, and indicate use of a tripod, all in your favour. The ambient light is lovely and soft.

The only thing truly missing from this picture is the WOW! factor. I hate to pimp more usage of pp, but in this case I think a big old hit of contrast and saturation could have done wonders. Also, assuming that you listed your pp steps in the order that you did them, it's better to do your pp first, then resize, then sharpen, and save for web.

As a final nitpick I would have gone for either a lower or higher POV to add drama to the scene. Quite a few landscape/seascape shots like this win Free Studies, so I would advise looking at past FS winners and see what it was that gave them that edge. Yes, pp may be part of it, but you still need to start with a good photo.

Feel free to PM me with any questions,

Susan

Lovin' the snow
by jent

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

This image made me laugh when I saw it, and in a good way. The very first outing I took the D90 was to the local ski hills, where I shot boarders and skiiers coming off jumps, so I can well understand the challenges you faced. I can see exactly what you wanted to get.

Basic composition isn't outstanding, but there is an attempt to show dof with the background and other boarder in the frame. That flat grey murky sky is by far your worst enemy, especially with snow to throw off glare.

I would, first of all, get a whole lot lower to the ground so you can shoot up at your friend, and that way you can probably eliminate having to do stuff like cloning out the lift lines, chairs etc. If need be, go to the other side of the ramp, so if there are trees etc on the other side of the hill, they won't be as intrusive as the lines and chairlift are. I would also suggest a much tigher crop so your friend pretty much fills the frame. Don't be afraid to push that lens to its limits! PP will only help if you have a strong photo to begin with.

Feel free to PM me with any questions,

Susan

Lazy lion
by tinkie2010

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

WOW! This really is an image worthy of that opening. The lioness looks like the click of the shutter woke her up, and she is deciding whether or not you're worth chasing down :-)

Composition isn't the greatest, but the eye is at a third, and the subject matter helps balance it out. The crop is a bit tight, I wonder if in using the border you chopped off part of her ear and whiskers. I find borders to be more of a distraction than anything, but they also have their fans here. The colours look fine. Even if you did use a sepia filter, which I suspect you did, predators are supposed to blend into their environment. I doubt that anyone here would argue with the amount of detail you managed to capture, even her eyelashes are visible.

I feel that what turned voters off wasn't so much the subject matter, but the lack of action, and the relatively flat tones and monochromatic background. Free Study is always an Advanced challenge, don't be afraid to take advantage of that fact.

Overall a very good image and nice lens, wish I had something like that! :-)

Feel free to PM me with any questions,

Susan

IMG_9646.jpg
by Magnumphotography

Comment:
This one's great! When did you shoot it?

JD Todd
by Magnumphotography

Comment:
I think this is one of the best shots of Todd, the look on his face tells you how much he's in the zone.

Message edited by author 2010-03-12 11:46:58.

Fixing the human body
by sarampo

Comment:
Congrats on the ribbon Joao! And what lovely models you have! :-)

Art's Voting Method
by Art Roflmao

Comment:
OMG...you truly are too funny for words. Or votes. :-)