The Tea Party
by JamesKW

Comment by LalliSig:
Not usually diggin soft focus images but here it´s well applied.

The Tea Party
by JamesKW

Comment by train:
Beautifully done Puppy looks so cute as well

The Tea Party
by JamesKW

Comment by UNTITLED:
Beautiful photo...the PP gives it kind of magical fantasy feel. Could I nitpick and ask for more detail in the pup? Great job!

The Tea Party
by JamesKW

Comment by jblaylockrayner:
Nice shot - Like the tones - lovely lighting and exposure - Wish the dog and figures were sharper though - The background is - This is very distracting as they are key to the shot.

The Tea Party
by JamesKW

Comment by CNovack:
First off I love the mood you are trying to capture here. A sweet and enduring moment between mother & daughters in a picnic perfect setting. The white dresses capture the idea of innocence and sweetness - The whole setting and your subject remind me of Gay Talbot's Tea Party painting. This is a good picture but there are several things that would improve visual appeal and place this in the above average or even exceptional category. The teapot & teacups get lost in the ruffle of the dresses. Placing them slightly higher on a small kids table would give them equal share of the themed spotlight. Next the mother's hand obscures the gesture of giving or receiving tea to/from her daughters. Making that gesture visible to the viewer is highly important for it adds human interest, visual appeal, and a way for the viewer to connect emotionally with the scene presented. By simply having the mother give/receive tea/teacup with her other hand it would make that gesture visible. All subject's have a look of concentration on their faces but none has a smile that would give us a visual cue that they are having fun. A single smile can show joy and offer another connection for the viewer to connect to the image. It took me a few seconds to figure out what the I was seeing in the foreground. A little dog sits there but he/she is very hard to see because the dog is underexposed so that one really cannot make out details on it's face. Flash fill would expose the dog correctly so that we see the details more clearly but you would have to be careful that you don't overexpose the details of your main models in the white dresses which can reflect the light back. This is just my opinion but I think the addition of the little dog does not add much to the scene. Introducing too many subjects in your photo composition can either weaken or strengthen the composition. The center stage belongs to the mother & daughters having a tea party. Adding the cute little dog I think takes some attention away from your main subjects. Lastly I think that desaturation takes away from the appeal of the photo. Desat or B/W or sepia done right can add a sense of nostalgia and times long gone. But I think that keeping the colors of rich greens against the downy white tones of the dresses would really help add to visual appeal. It would invoke/strenthen the idea of a picnic type setting for this lovely little tea party.

The Tea Party
by JamesKW

Comment by RitaD:
Really beautiful portrait!

Precision and Grace
by JamesKW

Comment by Art Roflmao:
Fill it up with Red Bull and see what happens! ;-) Very nice job, James!

Precision and Grace
by JamesKW

Comment by dmadden:
the background really does a lot for this, love the DOF. And glad i did'nt enter :) 6+4

Precision and Grace
by JamesKW

Comment by sherpet:
Good capture with this fine image.....

Precision and Grace
by JamesKW

Comment by liberty:
This looks like the photo I commented on in "add your new uploaded photo 2" but the hummingbird shots can look similar, nice detail, 7.