b l e a k
by Melethia

Comment:
Deb - I had no idea this was yours and gave you a high vote as well! I find it most interesting. Seems the very epitome of bleak. Well done. Just hit the ignore button on that score :-)

Street Girls
by bleu

Comment:
This is highly underrated IMO. Beautifully done, especially since you didn't use a filter. I'm sorry I didn't vote - you would have had another high score.

North of Eden
by Neil

Comment:
Neil, I can't believe this one didn't break 6. What a low-scoring challenge this was! Still a beautiful shot, and actually a very good placement overall.

Monet's Water Lilies
by DrAchoo

Comment:
This is a pretty cool effect, Doc. Did you put gel/Vaseline on a filter in this pattern, or did you achieve this by twirling your camera on a tripod in a long exposure? Very interesting.

downtown (8).jpg
by UNCLEBRO

Comment:
Eric, this is really well done. I love the angles both in the painted lines and building that contrast so well with the softness of the water. Lovely!

Parallel Lines in Parallel Triangles
by bassbone

Comment:
Peter, this is beautiful! I was one of your 7's, and think I maybe robbed you. Upon closer inspection, I should have given you at least an 8 for this. The lighting is absolutely superb, as are the shapes.

Looking down
by FocusPoint

Comment:
I'm really glad this one ribboned - I think the bokeh is exceptional here. Well done!

Faded Beauty
by NikonJeb

Comment:
Jeb - an attempt at a critique of sorts. I gave you a 6, BTW.
First, I think the subject is lovely and the lighting is just about perfect. The use of green bokeh in the b/g is excellent as it provides a metaphorical foil to the dying rose.
Now for the reasons I think you barely missed that 6 on this one :-)

Although the rose appears initially to be in a nice position compositionally, I felt something was slightly off balance while voting. I think it's because the real subject (in my eye at least) is the center of the rose. The center is high and near the center - which gives a feeling of needing a bit more room on the top and less on the bottom. The rose also has a bit of a rigid vertical feel to it - if it were tilted slightly with the stem disappearing to the bottom left corner I think the line would lead nicely to the subject. Finally, I think that the whitish petals on the right side of the rose detract from the subject. The eye tends to always be drawn to the brightest part of a photo, and in this case it's those two petals.

Hope this is helpful - not meant to be harsh, as I do think it's a lovely photo and, as I said, exceptionally well lit. Just a couple ideas that might make it even stronger (and of course this is only my .02 - I'm far from an expert on photo critique!)

In the morning Light
by griz210

Comment:
This is gorgeous, David! I really like the warmth of this image a lot.

The Unbearable Lightness of Being
by posthumous

Comment:
This looks like an excellent contenter for the OOBIE this week :-) I really like it. Very artistic, tells a little story right in one frame.