The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by DougPaz:
Humorous take on the challenge. Nice composition. I wisht the sign was just a bit brighter though.

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by dodobird:
This is just really funny, great idea and perspective with the city behind the sign, the title helps also. The focus is good on the city, nice and crisp, but due to poor lighting/shadow on the sign it seems to be a bit grainy. The sign placement os good, grabs your attention yet allows for the view of the city, which is important on this shot. The horizon is also nicely placed on the lower third. The colors are nice, not eye catchingly brillant, but nice for a cityscape. 7.

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by joshua:
this photo could use a little clockwise rotation and a little more light on the sign

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by Wheeler1992:
perfect sky in the background. Is that sign on the top of a building?

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by Lustre:
Funny title. I like you composition - the sign is well placed (perhaps just a little close to the tallest building under it), The shot of the city is an interesting one - lots of variety and the clouds of smoke / steam add an industrial feel to it. My biggest negative is that the sign is a little dark - I wonder if using a flash would have helped illuminate the sign since it was backlit by the sun. Well done.

Oasis in the Snow
by mariomel

Comment by Azrifel:
~~~~Critique Club Comment~~~~

Composition (content)
Excellent composition, the beams of sunlight and shadow in the foreground pull the eye into the island of trees and create a nice perspective.
Did you know the sun would do that or was it a coincedence? The amount of time per day that the sun does this shadow game must be short and only for a couple of weeks per year.... I like it how you captured it in perfect balance with the island of trees and the island of trees in a perfect balance with the foreground and shadow positions.
Good crop, equal amounts of space at each side. The foreground takes a lot of space, but that works really well on this picture.

A nice coincedence is that the angle of the hill finds a parallel in the angle of the treetops.

Background
Too bad that there are trees on the left, something like the right would have made the island/oasis stand out even more. The sky is a nice rich blue.

Camera Work (Technical)
Good exposure, there is no way that you get detail in the shadows of the trees when you shoot at the sun with a bright sky and a bright foreground. The capture of the sky and the sun without overexposing the snow is very good. The darkness of the trees works very well even, as it makes the whole pack of trees appear like one entity.
Focus is good, sharpening a bit too much, but it could be the way the light works around edges here, I have seen it happen before.
Whitebalance is perfect. Very clean picture.

Digital Processing (technical)
No comments.
The filesize is only 113kb, you are allowed 150kb. Saving it at a higher quality level can enhance detail sharpness here.

My opinion
Nice.

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by inspzil:
Hmmm... Somewhere in canada I'm guessing. Towards quebec maybe? Strange to read visitors only. Too much sky IMO. Not a bad shot though - Inspzil

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by kiwiness:
Nice composition, that sky really looks crispy blue.

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by Turbotech:
Very Nice shot.

The city no one calls home
by mariomel

Comment by kandyj:
Wish the buildings looked a little more upright, they look to be leaning to the left. I love the creativity and meets the challenge very well.