Purple Haze
by Phocal

Comment by spencelg:
My favorite for this challenge!

Sunbathing
by Phocal

Comment by sidpixel:
Hello from the critique club

An appealing image that meets the challenge well

That looks like one precarious perch! It just wouldn̢۪t be the same without his green coat, it certainly makes him different but probably most of all his outstretched leg completes it. Underneath it all he̢۪s actually quite distinctively marked, anyway, a most appropriate choice for the challenge, well done Ronnie.

Golden Gator
by Phocal

Comment by sidpixel:
Hello from the critique club

An appealing image that meets contributes to the open challenge well

Well done Ronnie, you were well rewarded for waiting in the right position. That is a part of the effort that goes in to your lovely images there is a lot of patient preparation, stalking and waiting for the right moment to get that extraordinary image that stands out from the rest of the crowd.

Baby Gator
by Phocal

Comment by sidpixel:
Hello from the critique club

An excellent image that meets the challenge well

Exquisitely done Ronnie! Yet again you are able to keep pushing the boundaries, another very striking ‘gator, with that amazing eye staring at you, while at the same time reflecting the world around him. The shallow DOF works well emphasising that eye even more but what I like most is the mono processing this makes the end result even more focused. The content while striking is also quite minimal and fulfils the challenge brief, good score and position well done Ronnie

Golden Gator
by Phocal

Comment by jomari:
Beautiful shot!

Baby Gator
by Phocal

Comment by Phocal:
Jbirkman you are welcome and glad you enjoyed the read.

I have been around gators for many years now and while it is hazardous I take no unnessaccary chances. I also don̢۪t recommend that anyone do some of the things I do without fully understanding gator behavior.

But, gators are my favorite wildlife subject and I have spent most of the last 3 years learning how to photograph them.........which due to their size and low to the ground profile is not easy.

Baby Gator
by Phocal

Comment by jbirkman:
Thanks so much for the links to the information. Very interesting read. I doubt I would have the stones to lay down next to a pond full of baby gators and keep and eye out for the mama. Wow. Good stuff.

Baby Gator
by Phocal

Comment by colorcarnival:
I'm not sure if this is an understatement but I will say that this is a pretty darn amazing photo. Should finish high in the challenge.

Baby Gator
by Phocal

Comment by streetpigeon:
Remarkable study of this baby alligator, crisp, delicate and intimate. Beyond the understatement of the minimal portrayal, its head barely cresting above the water, is the sense that he/she may be so newly born that what looks like filmy vegetation to the left could even be the tatters of the egg sack from which it's just emerged. The whipped cream, sprinkles and cherry is the incredible reflection of what I take to be water, trees and sky in this little fellow's eye. This lifts the image, excellent as it already is, into a higher realm of wonder, enchantment and epiphany.

Said the Spider to the Mosquito
by Phocal

Comment by sidpixel:
Hello from the critique club

An excellent image that contributes well to the challenge

A great shot Ronnie, made even better with the quality of the light and the composition. You have done well to include the poor mosquito with the spider it completes the image. As for your self-criticism about DOF I can see your point but it is not a major issue because the rest of it so good. I like the way the light catches the web and the detail of the spider. I am not convinced that this is true macro but the voters here seem to have favoured close up images so well done with your blue.