'the smells'
by suemack

Comment by front_element:
Really nice image. Maybe a tad oversharpened?

'the smells'
by suemack

Comment by danw791:
like the detail

on the web
by suemack

Comment by shutterfly:
Totally underrated!

on the web
by suemack

Comment by zeuszen:
When I look at this photograph coldly (utterly detached), this is what I come away with:

â€Â¢ no, it ain't sexy
â€Â¢ no, it ain't no sweet, no cliché and no aww-so-hallmark-cutie
â€Â¢ no, it ain't no sentiment, no commodity (as a popular print for sale), no easy genre.

What it is, without having to argue a difficult point, is an image

â€Â¢ which embellishes nothing, especially no aesthetic preference, no concept or notion
â€Â¢ which alludes not, suggests not and makes no reference to any thing or idea outside of itself
â€Â¢ which is what it is without pretense, claims to meaning or symbolist properties

There is, decidedly, nothing personally expressive about such an image. There is no message, no hint or complaint, no personal laundry. The author remains appropriately invisible behind the abstraction, the mystery of objects captured here, which are trouvée, found and serve not as means for an intended purpose or effect outside of one that existed naturally and prior to being photographed.

What we have here is a mystery, an esoteric document, if you like, which not only invites us, as viewers, to study it but which, probably, mystified its author in the first place, prompting the photograph.

A photo such as this, I believe, should not conform to any set notions of composition/tastes/appetites and technical conventions that apply to so much we consume and try to recreate. It should instead be executed according to its own dictates, so that we may be able to discover things that are new, uncharted or simply phenomenal, no matter how modest a thing it may appear to be. This has been done here, superbly, and without any traceable interference of ego, as far as I can see, and this, my people, is why I feel

it deserves a 10.

Message edited by author 2006-02-13 13:19:58.

'the cat'
by suemack

Comment by Melethia:
This is why people should take pictures. Really, really a great shot, imho. Love the tones, the lighting, the motion, the clarity of the cat and the DOF to blur the woman just "so".

'the smells'
by suemack

Comment by sherpet:
Great close-up.....

on the web
by suemack

Comment by zeuszen:
After considering this photograph for what it is, then for what it is not, it remains, apparently, exactly what and how it should be, a 10.

'the cat'
by suemack

Comment by bucket:
this shot is so much more interesting than most animal shots..a simple reason..it tells a story..choice of tones is perfect..I gave it a 7...and think maybe that is too low..well done..

on the web
by suemack

Comment by hanneke:
you have a good eye, nice capture. the grain in the background is very nice, though I normally don't like grain :P

'shattered'
by suemack

Comment by hotpasta:
lovely shot, great dof and good choice to go black and white...I think this should do well for you