Delicate grain
by Ennil

Comment by bucket:
I love the leaf being there..makes the shot much more intriguing..i feel like i am seeing someone who doesn't want to be seen..of course I get bored with the standard shots..quite simply, I am glad there is a leaf there..
nice work...

If you push, I'll break
by Ennil

Comment by OneSweetSin:
Greetings from the Critique Club

I'm going to start off by saying what is that a chain of coins? All I know is it takes away from the entire image which is otherwise stunning.

The lighting here is perfect it creates an air of mystery.

The limited focus works wonders here.

With all the black and white going on here those lips of her could use a more color, not much but just a hint more of pink or red. She has beautifully shaped lips they should stand out more.

I really do like this with the exception of the chain of whatevers that seem distracting. It should have scored higher and I'm guessing many voters said whats so delicate about this without thinking beauty is delicate...it disappears without warning.

Anna

Delicate grain
by Ennil

Comment by basssman7:
from the critique club

This is a a very strong image. I think the overall composition, focus and exposure are all excellent. I love the rather muted colours which give it a unique look. There is certainly some apparent grain here, so it fits the challenge.

I think the one part which distracts me is the leaf which covers part of her face. It is extra concerning because it comes so close to her right eye, and in portraits everyone is drawn to make eye to eye contact with the subject. I notice that the shot was taken with an slr camera at an aperture of f5.6. The lens is not mentioned. If the lens is a fast (has a wide aperture such as f2.8 or so) one, it can cause some problems like this. When viewing the image in the viewfinder you always see it at the wide open aperture, which of course has a smaller depth of field. I have had a great landscape shot ruined because there turned out to be a piece of grass which was not visible in the wide open aperture, but was definately there when the lens stopped down to take the picture. What I mean is that when you composed the shot the leaf may not have been nearly as noticable as it ended up being. That is one of the nice things about digital is being able to review the photo right away to pick up on this like that. (or checking the DOF preview if your model offers tha option) Of course it may not have been possible for you to retake the photo, as I do not know the circumstances.

One other minor point is the stray hair which crosses her left eye. I am not sure off hand if the grain challenge allowed minor retouching or not. If it did it might have been a good idea to clone this hair out.

Her brown eyes are piercing and definately help make this image. If it were not for the leaf, I am sure this would have placed even higher than the respectable 5.39 that it did. Bottom line is that this is a winner of a photo...minus the leaf.

Thanks for sharing this image. Are there others from this shoot? I am sure many of us would love to see them. :)

A country's pride and joy
by Ennil

Comment by Canadian_eh:
haha, i agree with senoj, only with different vocabulary. I really like this one, you look so serious (and oviously pourd!) yet sensitive and mysterious... do i need to say any more? nice!

If you push, I'll break
by Ennil

Comment by magnus:
It's photos like this one that makes me wonder why I still bother with DPC. This is simply a great photo, and it fits the challenge beautifully. Even accounting for some people who don't get it, I would still have expected it to be at least in the top 20. When something this artistically done doesn't get appreciated then it may be time to move to a site with higher standards. But I for one am certainly putting you on my favorites list!

kapak42.jpg
by Ennil

Comment by christie3:
No way! Super huge congrats, Miz Ennil!!

kapak42.jpg
by Ennil

Comment by philup:
AWESOME..!! Congrats..!!

kapak42.jpg
by Ennil

Comment by vikas:
Congrats!! well deserved picture to be on the cover!

kapak42.jpg
by Ennil

Comment by zapgrafx:
Congrats! What a great image.

If you push, I'll break
by Ennil

Comment by rick13601:
hmmm....i totally don't get it.....sorry