Fear No Art
by hannafate

Comment:
Hello Hanna from the Critique Club,

Composition
This must have been an opportunity shot - composed as well as possible bearing in mind the location. The wire across the front is distracting, as is the background and the other vehicles but maybe it would have been difficult to rearrange it. I have played with a tighter crop and it doesn't help. At least the diagonal placing of the car, providing depth, works.

Focus
The whole image is in focus - maybe if you had used a larger aperture (smaller f number), you could have thrown some of the distractions out of focus but you would lose some detail on the main subject - your choice.

Exposure
Exposure looks about right, you have some blown highlights but they do not contain important detail and the image has a good even range from black to white.

Challenge
I guess this is unusual enough to meet the challenge - it would have been better in a controlled environment but we have to make do with waht is ther!

Overall
Well spotted and the capture is about as good as you could make it in the environment. Keep shooting, maybe there will be an opportunity to shoot it on its own one day.

Hugh
Any comments or reactions, feel free to contact me.

When Giant Spiders Attack
by Jesuispeure

Comment:
Hello Amanda from the Critique Club,

Composition
Well spotted - makes a dramatic image. Like the way the tower leaps away from you and the rule of thirds works well in forcing one's eyes back to the "spider" image. The blue splash near the top of the tower provides interest and balance to what otherwise might have been bottom heavy. I guess this must have been taken tripod mounted (if you didn't you kept very still!) and the 1600 ISO creates just a tiny haze of noise centre left but this camera is fantastic - I have a EOS 300D too and love it.

Focus
You don't say what lens you used but it must have had a short focal length because the whole image is well focused - an achievement at f/4.0

Exposure
Tricky to take night scenes - you have done well - there are the tiniest amount of blown highlights and they don't matter - no loss of important detail and the balance of gold spider against the blue lights is just right.

Challenge
Very few submissions really met the challenge - yours was one of them (IMHO)!

Overall
A dramatic image, well captured, scoring very nearly 6. What more could you want? A higher score? Well that is in the hands of the audience and that is often beyond comprehension. Well done!

Hugh
Any comments or reactions, feel free to contact me.

Extraordinary beings: Cygnus. Powerful and beatiful. Here they run to defend the net.
by greslizzz

Comment:
Hello Fe from the Critique Club,

Composition
The composition is pleasing. I like the diagonal placing of the two swans and the nearly square aspect ratio. The verical bar on the left and another fainter one on the right are distracting - if they are the net you refer to it needs to be more nearly in focus. If they are reeds or vegetation, it might have been better to change the camera position to avoid them.

Focus
The first swan is clearly the centre of attention and is in focus. The second swan is not well focused. Maybe it would atract more attention if it was. To increase your depth of field, reduce the aperture (higher f number).

Exposure
This was a difficult shot to expose right, a light subject against a dark background. The swans are both overexposed, losing detail in the highlights. The background water looks muddy, especially near the top of the image. Although it would have made the water darker, I would have exposed less to capture the detail on the swans.

Challenge
Long titles can cause DPC commentators to mark down - it is better for the image to tell the story - not always easy. Is this extraordinary? Maybe not for me but it is what you feel that matters!

Overall
A pleasing image overall - keep shooting and you will see improvements.

Hugh
Any comments or reactions, feel free to contact me.

Leading troop of clones
by paha_l

Comment:
Hello Pavel from the Critique Club,

Composition
There is no single point of interest - the six water drops are the main theme and they seem to be randomly placed. The wood grain background running at a diagonal is probably the best choice. Somehow the balance is not quite right for me - maybe if the drops were placed in a defined pattern,(circle, square, diamond?) it would make more sense.

Focus
You have used a fairly shallow depth of field, which is good for drawing attention to a particular item or area but there does not seem to be a reason for it. Maybe a deeper depth of field (smaller aperture=higher f number), bringing all the drops into focus might improve the image.

Exposure
The expoure looks just about right, any more and the highlights which are already blown out would become intrusive, any less and the image would be too dark.

Challenge
Does it fit the challenge? Maybe in the context of capturing a macro of water drops, which is unusual but maybe not quite extraodinary.

Overall
Sorry but the image doesn't seem to have any purpose. If your intention was an abstract, then perhaps it needs more interest. If your intention was to stretch your photography - great! Keep shooting.

Hugh
Any comments or reactions, feel free to contact me.

No Ordinary Man.
by knklove

Comment:
Hello Kreg from the Critique Club,

Composition
The statue is clearly your primary subject and I like the way the branches on the left and the trees on the right provide a frame. The camera position means the wall is sloping away form the viewer and this provides some interesting diagonal lines. Maybe the window behind the statue is a bit distracting but I'm not sure what you could have done about that. Maybe I would have cropped a little less on the bottom, to retain the whole of the plinth or at least the first step.

Focus
The statue itself is in focus - there is deep depth of field which is fine, although a wider aperture with consequently less depth of field might have softened the background to some advantage.

Exposure
Capturing white subjects in a generally dark background is always difficult. You have overexposed some of the statue, losing some highlight detail, which is a pity but had you reduced the light by smaller aperture or shorter exposure you would have lost details in the shadows. Maybe the statue was more important?

Challenge
This was a good subject for the challenge for those with the appropriate religious understanding (and convictions).

Overall
The religious theme will spark an interest from some of your audience - others may react against it. It is a very reasonable capture of the statue. Wander around some more and take your camera with you!

Hugh
Any comments or reactions, feel free to contact me.

amazing, unbelievable...extraordinary !
by dknaeps

Comment:
Hello Dirk from the Critique Club,

Composition
Wall as a backdrop to sandalled feet propped up providing the main subject. Hmm, the off centre positioning adds a bit of interest and the legs provide depth but maybe this is an occasion where symmetry might have been beneficial.

Focus
The depth of field is good, right from the knees to the wall.

Exposure
Full range from black to white, with some detail in the shadows and only a little loss of detail in the highlights. Shot fast enough to freeze any camera movement, giving a solid image. Probably best in B & W.

Challenge
Maybe your intentions were a little too subtle for your audience - the "extraordinary" was clearly in your mind but you failed to convey it to most of your audience.

Overall
I'm not sure what this was about - completing the photographer's comments box would help the critiquer! Not really my cup of tea but keep submitting, your B& W style shown here would benefit a more striking subject.

Hugh
(Username hughletheren)
Any comments or reactions, feel free to contact me.

Weekend Freedom
by DefyTime

Comment:
Nice location but a little oversharpened for me.

Callaway HX is for driving, Nike is for practice
by MyD2

Comment:
Neat idea but the highlights appear cilipped, taking out the detail of the balls.

Best Product
by graphicfunk

Comment:
This is the best idea I have seen so far and the bottle itself is beautifully crisp - pity about the background, which is too busy for me.

Spreading Paint on the Bread and Butter
by gerdagrice

Comment:
You have to be in the right place at the right time - and realise it! Well done, love it.