Tea Picker
by JohnBeebe

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

My critique will be short and sweet since you didn't post any of your own thougths on the photo...

This photo scored high enough in the challenge to not require much critique. Everyone seemed to like it.

I think it's an excellent image. The color saturation is a little heavy for my personal taste though.

John Setzler

Down in the River to Pray
by angela_packard

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi Angela :)

The idea behind this photo and your execution of it are both excellent. The photo seems to have received a rather poor audience in the challenge though. Trying to evaluate why that happened is difficult. I think there may be several reasons that I will discuss. There are two that come to mind for me immediately.

To begin with, the 'river' is not viewed by most as a holy place, even though it IS in the context you chose. Your photo is challenging more traditional thought on 'holy places'. When you do that on this website, you are going to get mixed reviews. This is a competition site and you can't normally ask your voters to think outside of their own box when voting on your image. There is no incentive for them to give you leeway since they are, indeed, your competition :)

Secondly, the photo lacks visual impact. Visual impact is the most important element of any photo on DPChallenge. You have to grab the viewer by the eyeball when your image pops up in front of them. If you accomplish that, they are more likely to think a little deeper into your ideas.

The blue color in the dresses here seem to become the focal point of the image since the rest of the photo is rather monochromatic. You are drawing the viewer's eye to that element of the image. When I look at this photo, especially within the context of this challenge, their dresses aren't what I really need to focus on. I need to see beyond that to your theme, as described in your title. White or black dresses would accomplish that with a little more strength, or converting the image to black and white would do the same thing to some extent.

I still think it's a good photo and better luck next time :)

John Setzler

Wellington, New Zealand
by KiwiShotz

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi KiwiPix :)

City skyline photos at night over water usually make excellent images. The lights and the reflection create some excellent postcard images dappled with color. This shot has a lot of those qualities, but in my opinion, there is simply too much negative (or unused) space within the frame. Maybe a tighter composition with a longer lens would create more impact in this image. Since I'm not familiar with Wellington, there is nothing within this image that identifies your city from any other city that might be photographed this way. This image is more about light and some possible texture rather than a portrait of a city, in my opinion. I challenge you to reshoot this photo and fill your frame with some of this beautiful light and reflection :)

John Setzler

St. Patrick's Cathedral
by likewh0a

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi likewh0a :)

I think your own comment sums up the validity of this photo. It doesn't look like you put much effort into it. Some of your comments also talk about the shadow and time of day, and that is a big issue here also. Time of day is everything for outdoor photos, and this one simply is at a very bad time. I can't offer you much critique and I don't believe the image warrants any more than this unfortunately.

John Setzler

Midnight Pier
by PeterPic

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi pieterw2008 :)

The composition of this photo is excellent, and the exposure also creates a nice sense of sound and motion for me. I think you did an excellent job with this image, and it appears that the voters feel the same way :)

As I was reading your information about post processing, I may be able to offer you some assistance in 'perfecting' this photograph. It seems that the orange glow of the light wasn't your preference, so learning to shift the white balance may be useful to you. If you are shooting in raw mode, you can shift the camera white balance after the shot during the raw conversion process. If not, you can use the levels dialog box in photoshop to select a poing within the image that is supposed to be 'white' and it will do some color correction for you. This option doesn't always work out well, but it can in a lot of cases. Your third option is to make it a black and white :) My personal preference in photography is black and white. If I create a photo where the color is not playing a key role, it ends up as a black and white anyway :)

Excellent work...

John Setzler

Pointing to the heavens
by Lustre

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi sparky_mark :)

The subject you chose for your entry is a good one, but I believe your approach to it could use a little work. The time of day for this particular photo doesn't seem to be a great choice when coupled with the weather. The shadows and highlights are fairly harsh, which is normal for a sunny day. My particular irritation is with the door to the church in the lower left corner. You need to find a way to include that element fully or to remove it completely. I have no idea what the landscape here looks like so I can't suggest any alternative views. This one just doesn't feel comfortable to me.

John Setzler

Desperation: Poverty's Child
by L1

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi Laurie :)

This photo scored rather well in the challenge and doesn't require much of a critique, but I have a possibly interesting point to offer you. Your choice of sepia toning on this photo may not have been the best option. Sepia toning achieves two effects, for the most part. 1 - it creates an antique feel and 2 - it creates warmth in the image. Neither of these two themes seem to be representative of your theme for this photo. Your photo represents something current, which wipes out the antiuqe nature of the sepia. Warmth and poverty aren't usually associated with each other either.

When you choose a post processing option, be sure to think about 'why' you are doing it. "It Looks Good" is often a valid enough reason, but determining "why" will help you grow :)

John Setzler

Dangerous Pussy Cats
by Pixelstate

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi Pixelstate :)

Congratulations on an excellent score. Please keep in mind that you can go to your photo page at any time during the challenge and uncheck the critique request box. This photo scored very well in the challenge and it's very well executed. I can't suggest any improvement. You should consider gettnig a large print of this one made :)

John Setzler

"When Two Or Three are Gathered in My Name"
by Rikki

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi Rikki :)

I don't believe this photo needs any critique. It did very well in the challenge. I wouldn't really change anything about this photo. The voters enjoyed it and I think it's a very well done image...

Nice work :)

John Setzler

Rhythm of the game ...
by ZILA

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club...

Hi ZILA :)

Since you didn't provide any of your own thoughts or comments on this image, my critique and comment will be short and sweet...

The only rhythm available in this image besides the title is the repetition of shape within the theme. Even though the photo meets the challenge in this manner, I can find nothing of interest in it. There is nothing wrong with this image, but it just doesn't inspire me in any way. The depth of field is also a bit too shallow. The dominos on the left side of the frame are fuzzy, and I can't see any reason they should be.

John Setzler