Surfing Thrills and Spills
by Gracious

Comment by inspzil:
Nice shot...I don't like it for this topic though

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by Gracious:
Now that this challenge is over, I want people to know that I wasn't representing my childhood here, but was reflecting on the children who lose their lives daily because of incidents beyond their control. Examples from recent news: Two young girls Kidnapped, raped, and murdered, children caught in the crossfire of drive-by shootings, a couple of young boys in foster care repeatedly raped and beaten. I won't go on. I'm terribly sorry if some of you found this "TOO depressing" but these children and many more never know the fun, and games, and innocence of childhood.
The lilies of the valley represent purity...and I am sorry that I couldn't find real ones to suit some of you. :-( The blood...oh yes...lol....the blood IS FAKE...I confess to using fake blood. Personally I thought it a better choice than the alternative.
Technically I know it's not a perfect image...that's why I'm here....to learn.

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by autool:
Composition: Subject Placement, Cropping, Background7,
Technical: Focus, Exposure, Lighting, Processing7,
Challenge: Does your entry meet it?1,
Appeal: Is it Interesting, Motivating, Etc.? 3,
Total Averaged Rating5. Autool

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by cq107:
im sorry but this, in my opinion, has nothing to do with childhood...

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by Meggie:
this is your impression of childhood!?

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by karmat:
The simple but strong colors really conveys a strong message here. Judging by your title, I am guessing you are referring to the tragedy of child abuse, or worse, murder. Something about hte image (not the message) bothers me though. I am not sure if it is the three differetn tones of white (flowers, foreground, background), the brightness of the red, or that the flowers look plastic. Please understand, I know some of that may have been intentional, or unavoidable, but I think fixing one or more of those things would have made this a very dramatic photo. karmat

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by floyd:
It's a fine idea but the plastic flowers spoil it for me. I feel this shot should be speaking about honesty and fragility but the fake plastic flowers are neither honest nor fragile. Was this intentional? Intentional irony? I like your lighting, your background and your framing. 8 - floyd

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by 11n:
Maybe I missed something here...? What the hell is the point? I don't get it.

Loose composition.

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by ClubJuggle:
Good photograph; I'm not sure I get the connection between the blood and the flowers though. Please feel free to PM me to explain and include your title in the message. - ClubJuggle.

Shedding of Innocent Blood (God Help Them!)
by Gracious

Comment by syamjonimi:
Definitely evokes feelings of sadness and sorrow as childhood sometimes is......The idea is unique, The fold line on the right side, and the shadowy areas on the right of the backdrop are distracting. Perhaps you could have cropped tighter or used different lighting to get a more even effect. Personal opinion, but, I think I would have cropped much tighter to make the blood the focal point rather than the flower. This week I tried a trick I read about in the forums and taped a small piece of tissue paper over my camera flash to soften the light. It seemed to work because I have several positive comments on the lighting of my childhood photo. =5 syamjonimi ;'-D