The Grumpy Toad
by Marjo

Comment by dsidwell:
Kiss me! Mwaaw! Now I'm a prince--what? I'm NOT a prince? No wonder I'm grumpy! Neg space does not add grumpiness,but it does imply that the toad is part of a larger space. Is that sand he/she is on? I somehow wish it were more toad-environment-like. Oh well. Nice shot! 8

The Grumpy Toad
by Marjo

Comment by Sonifo:
The lighting is a bit harsh for me.

The Grumpy Toad
by Marjo

Comment by justesme:
I love this toad. All it's bumps and colors are brilliant!

However, at the moment, it seems a little.. 'short?' like it's been cropped too tightly. But, you could go even further by cropping off the whole of his arm, to stop just beyond the brown 'wooden-like' object on its head and cropping up to his chin. I suggest to crop up to the chin because it looks like it's a little top heavy.

Try it. Just scroll up enough to chop off it's hands and place a piece of paper over the body.

This is just a suggestion =)

Brain Bender
by Marjo

Comment by Marjo:
Thank you so much for the wonderful comments and votes. I had this setting on the table with two table lamps on the floor on either side and a centered overhead light. I kept experimenting and this one had "almost" the clarity that I wanted and I really liked the underside lighting. I was told by someone close to me that the one I didn't submit was better...figures. One never knows!

Blazing Saddles
by Marjo

Comment by Marjo:
Thanks everyone for the votes and positive comments.
My shy hubby (you were right-on Alpine99) did a wonderful job helping with the set up and posing for me. He is still disappointed, though, that HIS photo didn't make the top 10. He really got into tracking the scores, etc.
K-Rob, I tried sepia and it looked pretty good. I dismissed it for the same reason you mentioned. The original movie was in color. I mainly wanted to use sepia to get rid of the purple halter. We didn't even think about using a leather one until after we viewed the photos which was, of course, too late.

Pogo Stick and Pedal Pushers
by Marjo

Comment by Marjo:
I appreciate the votes and comments. This was a fun challenge. Fell off way too many times. I don't remember it being that difficult waaaay back when. The hardest thing then was not enough weight to compress the springs. Didn't have that problem this time.
The first comment about it being a fad and not a trend made me rethink the challenge. I was treating fads and trends as interchangeable. I think the majority of the people see it that way, but I may have submitted something different had it occurred to me prior.
Thanks again.

Just a baby...
by Marjo

Comment by Marjo:
Thanks for all the comments and votes.
I was "ify" on submitting this one. I saw all kinds of contrasts: fuzzy brown to silky, black to white, brown to white, gravel to hay, wood fence to wire fence and sunshine to shade. I didn't think it would score well because of the bright sun and I probably made it worse by post processing. Sometimes, you need to leave well enough alone.

Cold and Refreshing
by Marjo

Comment by Marjo:
Thanks for the votes and helpful comments. e301, I almost titled this...Not a Life Saving Device. In hindsight, I should have.
I am not going to tell you how many props I drank while shooting this! LOL

Brain Bender
by Marjo

Comment by Blinks:
Ooooh! I like this one! Very nice composition and it's very crisp!

Brain Bender
by Marjo

Comment by faidoi:
Nice composition. Beautiful shapes. Pretty bright lighting.