The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by timmi:
This photo really expresses the joy. I can see my kid joining yours in the fun. Love the way you captured the chocolate dripping of the spoon onto her/his clothes. It is very spontanious shot. The only distracting bit is the bottom glare on the pot and the harsh shadow the figure casts. Have you considered using no flash and just sticking to normal lighting of the room with longer exposure to compensate.

Spiral
by GeneralE

Comment by jmsetzler:
Greetings from the Critique Club :)

Hi Paul...

Your subject choice here is interesting. The detail in this macro is good and the color adds some interest as well. There are a couple of things that could possibly make this shot stronger. 1 - A darker background would help create a higher level of contrast against the subject, which would make that detail stand out even more. 2 - It may have been possible to create an even tighter view rather than a straightforward photo of the entire subject... the rotation/spiral of this subject is more interesting, IMO, than the entire subject itself.

The vignette border, in this case, doesn't add much for me because there is not enough space surrounding the subject to accommodate it. My personal taste in borders for posting photos online is simply to separate the image from the background of the page it's displayed on and create a contrast for the image edges. Certain types of borders can become distracting, especially if the viewer finds himself asking why a particular border type was chosen.

Based on your description, I know you didn't have the options of creating a strong light scenario or changing the background, but I do see a lot of different and more interesting composition opportunities here :)

Keep up the good work :)

At the Altar of Free Speech
by GeneralE

Comment by jspencer1962:
Yeah.....you can never go wrong with free speech....10

The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by msrpavila:
funny

The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by pcody:
Cute kid and a happy picture. The shadows caused by the flash are distracting. Some ways to avoid shadows: place something thin and white over the flash, move the subject away from the background, use natural lighting and white board to bounce light back into the picture.

The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by adine:
Cute. I see joy is those eyes! You caught the chocolate mid-drip. The shadow from the flash makes this very snap-shot-ish, but the white drape in the back suggest set-up. Perhaps a more natural setting in the kitchen would be more thematic, and add to our sense of the environment of cooking...

The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by Rooster:
the light shining off the bowl is slightly distracting but I like the shot, especially the silver tooth!

The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by DragonBro:
I'm not real sure I want to know what he's eating. It looks alittle staged thour, theres not enough stuff on the aprin and the flour looks to "placed"

The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by stargazer:
What a happy shot!

The Joy Of Cooking
by GeneralE

Comment by amsmyth:
what a wonderful smile, just all around a joyous image...