Copy-of-Picture-006-edited-resize-web
by cowboy221977

Comment by damoninja:
LOVE the title.

The Mask of War
by cowboy221977

Comment by JuliBoc:
The destruction is well depicted here. Very sad.

Devils Den Trail-dixie viewing the valley
by cowboy221977

Comment by JuliBoc:
Nice to have a traveling companion who is truly interested in the sights. :) Dixie see all sorts of wonderful things to explore in this wild spot.

The Empty Tree
by cowboy221977

Comment by snaffles:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

Very good subject matter, the dead cypress does indeed look very empty of any life. I like too how the dead twig on the right seems to be reaching to the dead tree, so that adds some interest to the shot.

However...you know what I'm going to say....too centred!!! You can move around the focus areas in your camera, you don't have to have it on centre point all the time. Either bump it over a little, or just as you have things lined up and set to shoot, lean over a little. Shoot off centre. Create a little unbalance. There's nothing wrong with that, in fact it's pretty much expected in photography. Again, as I'm a low POV kinda person...yep, getting down there in the sawgrass/mud/cypress knees and shooting up, esp against such a dark bg, could have made a world of difference here. Never take just one or two shots for a challenge entry; take a whole whack of them. Try to take the time to do so. This challenge's winner shot over 1200 frames for her capture.

I'm not saying you need to shoot that many, but at least try to shoot a couple dozen or so. That'll give you more to choose from, and the opportunity to chimp through what you already have and go, 'OK, I have 4 really great shots from this angle. Now what other angles can I try?' and go from there.

Feel free to PM me

Susan

Louisiana Dawn
by cowboy221977

Comment by MelonMusketeer:
This one is very relaxing to view. The smooth color and the stillness of the water make it connect.

The Empty Tree
by cowboy221977

Comment by PennyStreet:
8 from me. Something serene and beautiful about this loneliness...

Message edited by author 2012-05-14 12:46:57.

The Empty Tree
by cowboy221977

Comment by tvsometime:
Good find and rendering. 7

The Empty Tree
by cowboy221977

Comment by grahamgator:
Very nice scene; wish the tree were not dead center. (voted earlier)

Perfect Afternoon
by cowboy221977

Comment by snaffles:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

This does look like a nice serene setting, with deep green verdant trees and water...but the Topaz'ed sky kills this shot for me. The clouds look muddy and unrealistic in colour, and there's a huge whack of sensor dust near the top right third. Post-processing work, imho, should never, ever be what you notice about a photo; it should enhance the image, not overwhelm it to the point of drawing attention to itself. Sometimes less is more.

Feel free to PM me

Susan

Perfect Afternoon
by cowboy221977

Comment by Purple_Girl:
Lots of nice greenery but the sky looks a bit like you've burned it like crazy or something, which spoils it a bit for me. Overall the brightness just doesn't seem strong enough.