Inyanga
by MAK

Comment:
A huge congrats on this image...outstanding. Very glad to see this one ribbon.

Lowering Storm, Dusk, Province Lands
by Bear_Music

Comment:
Incredibly underrated image. I have seen few images on DPC that I like more than this one. This is what landscape photography is all about....

Monet's Flame
by sherpet

Comment:
It is great to see another Shez original posted. I saw the thumb and said to myself "Gee, someone is copying Shez..." Alas, you are!

Welcome back and glad to see you!

Boat House
by JuliBoc

Comment:
the boat in light almost appears painted in the scene rather than photographed - very nice rich image

Feed me Seymour
by awpollard

Comment:
i love the title - it sure does have that creepy look of Seymour - very dramatic edit to give this one a sinister appearance

Guess what...
by turnofthesue

Comment:
so graphic in treatment - i love the cartoon like effect created

Mountain Lake
by JuliBoc

Comment:
almost 3-dimensional now with that tree almost coming out of the scene

Warehouse
by Balko

Comment:
i love how the sky came out - very cool effect to bring life to this shot

IMG_0408_ed_720.JPG
by awpollard

Comment:
incredible details and textures throughout - this is a remarkable edit of the original

Le Cock after sunset
by marcusvdt

Comment:
Marcus - another couple thoughts to ponder

On the shots that you highlighted in the thread about previously "snapshots" that won ribbons, those shots were taken around 2003 and early 2005. The details and lighting were not as flat in those images and the eagle had some attitude and the other bird was just plain unusual looking.

If you notice the recent high scoring bird shots including the current Red ribbon winner in the FS, there are no longer 'snaps' but actual portraits. The are composed wonderfully, with rich tones and fantastic lighting. The shots that score well with this type of image, especially birds, are those that display some character. A sideways shot of a chicken is just that, but a shot of an eagle open beaked and screaming at us will get our attention.

If you want to compare a similar bird to your shot of the chicken, I would recommend the excellent photo that noraneko took here:


The bokeh is butter smooth and rich, the details in the chicken make you feel you can reach out and touch the animal, and the composition with the lovely lines and curves drives our eyes around the scene.