Rocking chair of my Grandfatherby
clickodakComment by snaffles: Greetings from the Critique Club!
So, we meet again, Mr
Clickodak...Muwahahahahahaaaaaa...*rubbing hands together in Dr Evil-like glee* ;-)
Ok. This is a lovely image that tells us a lot about your grandfather. I can see the weatheredness in the wood and the use of a cap that may have once been his is a nice touch. There is a subtlety to the tones, with the texture of what looks almost like a stucco wall behind, that offset the smoothness of the wood and seem to mesh in the woven texture of the hat. Personally I find the elegant, delicate carving of his name to be absolutely amazing, known it was done by hand. That shows care and love and dedication to his craft. I bet he was an amazing carpenter.
So why didn't this image do better than it did? Sadly DPC is a very literal site, and a Chairs challenge means that the voter is expecting to see at least one chair, in its entirety, in the entry. Look at what ribboned and this becomes apparent.
On a slightly more nitpicky note, the lack of a WOW! factor - it is a good shot, very well done, but it doesn't quite have the kind of eye-grabbing elements of a shot needed to win the high votes of DPC voters. The deep dof may have drawn voters too much into the bg details and texture, and away from the chair...or they might have thought it was noise.
I'm guessing you may have had to use a low ISO and f.16 to mute down some source light coming in through a window; if this is the case, you may want to invest in a 5-in-1 reflector, in which the main 'core' of the reflector is simply a giant diffuser sheet which can help reduce light.
Hope this critique has been of help, and keep up the good work! Feel free to PM me with any questions.
Susan
Message edited by author 2014-12-03 19:56:08. 
Photographer found comment helpful.
