Bows of light
by hajeka

Comment by santiago9er:
Very interested in how this was achieved

Blessing Buddha
by hajeka

Comment by kawhona:
It is frustrating to get so few comments with the voting. For what my opinion is worth (my interests and style are not always in synch with most on this site ) , the Buddah is dark and it is against a dark background. The site has alot of people that really do some exceptional studio/staged shots, by comparison this is quite ordinary. Maybe a little water in front to get a reflection or some placement of additional highlights would have yeilded a more dramatic shot. I personally am not a studio type photographer but, if you check out alot of the challenges have examples of people who really put alot of effort into that kind of thing.

Blessing Buddha
by hajeka

Comment by Artifacts:
Positives:
Post processing is the main strength of this image. The incense is a nice addition.

Technicals:
Basically the sharpness, background and those types of things are all OK.

Perspective and composition, however, are on the weak side. Lighting choice does not add a lot of viewer interest to the composition though there is nothing really wrong with it either. The depth of field makes the near foreground part of the incense out-of-focus

The Challenge:
You got 4.9 but that is only about .3 below the challenge average. It probably would hve scored lower if it were not for its technical merit.

It is doubtful voters had a problem with your religious choice, but pictures of stationary art objects typically score low at DPC. Your idea to add more interest by including the incense is a good one, it just needs more viewer interest.

Suggestions:
As far as it goes there really is not much "wrong" with your picture. But there are some things you might try to increase viewer interest.

One thought would be to change from the snapshot perspective. Try a dramatic angle either high or low. Be creative. Another change would be to give it angled and more dramatic lighting as well. Both would add lots of viewer interest.

Instead of having one incense stick, maybe have two or three and maybe add some breeze to show the smoke curling up better during the timed exposure. Directing strong lighting to the smoke rising would help.

Once I photographed a coffee pot with steaming coffee coming out and took over 70 exposures. I had to boil the coffee in a pan and pour it into the pot every two or three shots before the steam disappeared and I had to do it over again. I did that until I got a smoke curl that worked. That effort earned a yellow ribbon. Consider that for yours.

Lastly, you shot at f/6.3 which left the closer part of the incense stick out-of-focus. Consider a higher f/number for greater depth of field if that is practical. It will make the exposure a lot longer which might screw up the smoke curls so you'd have to work with it to find the right combination. Don't discount the possibility of simply letting the incense burn down enough that you could set them more upright.

Beauty of the Water
by hajeka

Comment by coolblue:
a really good shot unusual color lends to the effect

Beauty of the Water
by hajeka

Comment by pixelpig:
I'm glad you left the spider in

Two lenses, which to choose?
by hajeka

Comment by Charlene:
I really like the clarity of this image. The reflections in the lenses also mirroring each other is a nice touch, imo. Nice choice of contrasting colors also.

Bows of light
by hajeka

Comment by Bud:
Great colors, the lack of a strong subject to draw the eye works a bit against this image.

Bows of light
by hajeka

Comment by DavidLopez:
Very cool, nice vivid colors.

Beauty of the Water
by hajeka

Comment by annig:
very nice

Beauty of the Water
by hajeka

Comment by BrianR:
Quite amazing....