An Afternoon Swimby
GinaRothfelsComment: You asked a question in the threads, and so here goes a bit of comment about your shot...
As others have stated below, there are several things that combine to prevent this from scoring well.
-The focus on the face is very soft and it appears that you attempted to sharpen it through post processing. I can see a bit of detail in the feathers in one section but the remainder of the image is a bit blotchy.
-The lighting is extremely harsh, creating very hard shadows around the eye and elsewhere.
-The centered crop gives this an extremely static feel, preventing the viewer from wanting to stop and linger and look.
-The saturation of colors and white balance appear a bit too cool adding to the rather static feel of the crop.
-The contrast is extremely strong, preventing the subtle details of the feathers to show up.
-There is no background to provide a great deal of context, where the angle of the shot is downward, thus creating a 'snapshot' feel.
Combining these components, the overall feel is that the shot was a quick snap rather than a timed and planned study of the duck.
Looking at other entries you have entered before, the lighting and composition of those that have scored well was excellent, where the light interacts in a positive way to bring the object/ person to life. In this shot, that is missing.
I hope it is helpful...
Photographer found comment helpful.
