"San Francisco, We Come in Peace"
by Blue Moon

Comment by jaysonmc:
I thought this was a terrific shot. Love the sense of scale, the little touches, and the overall composition of the frame.

The Spider and the Fly
by Blue Moon

Comment by krnodil:
The background has some distracting noise to it, and the centered composition and not-so-sharp focus serves to keep the image from having a real impact for me. I had not voted this challenge, but I likely would have given this a 5, which for me means "average" - below average starts in the 4s for me.

Day 32: The Spider and The Fly Outtake
by Blue Moon

Comment by krnodil:
I believe this is an improvement on the other one, too - the off-set composition makes it more interesting and the background appears less noisy. Edit to add - in comparison with your other shot, this one, with the improved composition would have merited a 6 or 7 from me.

Message edited by author 2007-08-08 09:45:39.

The Spider and the Fly
by Blue Moon

Comment by levyj413:
Leah, since you asked for comments in your thread, I agree with the other folks who've commented since the challenge ended. I have the same camera, and I've also tried to use the super macro, but it's tough to get a really sharp image. Keep in mind that really good macro shots are razor sharp for the point of interest. Compare your shot to this, and I think you'll see how the lack of sharpness and angle hurt it (along with the blotchy background):


And compare the sharpness and framing to this one:

The Spider and the Fly
by Blue Moon

Comment by Dr.Confuser:
I like the centered (side to side) aspect of the photo but might have moved the subject down a bit. There is nice detail in the spider, but the focus is a little soft to bring it out. Also, possibly if the spider filled the frame, it might have been easier to appreciate the detail. You might have to move closer to the subject to pull this off - zooming in in an editing program may make the softness worse. Another approach might be to reduce the zoom and show the spider hanging from a web thread and located according to the rule of thirds. The simple background certainly emphasizes the subject. I wonder if a nice bokeh background might have increased the interest level of the photo. Good luck in future challenges.

Day 32: The Spider and The Fly Outtake
by Blue Moon

Comment by C_Steve_G:
Yes, you should have. This one has more interest, not only for framing, but the background is not distracting.

The Spider and the Fly
by Blue Moon

Comment by suiteness:
the composition just seems odd to me. (the outtake has better composition.) there is nothing drawing me into this picture. the BG is flat in color and texture, no DOF. the subject matter is interesting, but not the greatest angle to capture a story- its hard to tell whats going on unless you really study it... and with 600+ entries you gotta grab interest quickly. don't give up! (i won't either!)

The Spider and the Fly
by Blue Moon

Comment by Tim:
There's a bit of an issue with jpeg compression - the background has strange blobs of colour.

And really it looks like the spider is dead, just hanging from one leg...

The Spider and the Fly
by Blue Moon

Comment by mpeters:
Something about the centered comp with the one stretched out leg throw it off for me. Also something about the angle of the photo doesn't draw the viewer in, just makes him more of a voyer in the scene-disconnected if that makes sense. (probably doesn't ;))

The neutral BG doesn't do anything to enhance the texture or color of the spider. The fly shows up but only after really studying it and I suspect most voters skipped right past the fly.

There really isn't anything horrible about the photo, just nothing that really grabs me and makes me sit up in my chair!

This is just my fly by opinion...maybe it sheds a little light on the voters reaction. :)

"San Francisco, We Come in Peace"
by Blue Moon

Comment by see:
Love this shot. No surprise if a Oobie nomination is made on this one.