Girls on Wheels
by Zippy

Comment:
You have what look like major dust specks in this shot, near the top and on the left (also one on the front wheel of the bike). If they are in every shot you'll need to get the camera cleaned. Other than that it's a pretty good attempt at panning. It's a shame it wasn't a sunny day.

Great Everglades Egret
by LVE

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

Technical Qualities
I think this shot is very good technically - there is plenty of sharpness, plenty of detail and the colour is very good. Your aftershot editing of the photo is particularly effective - it really separates the subject from the background.

Having the background disappear to black on the outer edges stops the viewers eye from being drawn away from the main subject. The eye is naturally drawn to light coloured objects. If you take your "Beach Towel" shot as an example - my eye was drawn from the towel to the plants behind it almost instantly. Moving the towel into the sun and having the plants darker would have really changed the feel of this shot.

Composition / Subject
The subject is wonderful - an interesting bird living in its natural environment... Way better than all of the zoo photos amongst this challenge. The shadows across the birds back (from the grasses) really add an element of interest to the shot and it looks a lot more natural than if there was nothing between the camera and bird whatsoever.

The green tint across the head looks odd. Is that natural colour or is that another piece of grass in the way? Placing the bird off centre in the frame works well - particularly so when the empty space is added such that the animal is walking into the frame, rather than out of the frame.

Border / Title
The border blends well with the light-source editing of the background. It's interesting that so many people didn't like the vignette, although I think when it comes to borders there are two schools of thought. Some people don't think borders belong on any image on this site.

The title is very literal, but still works well. Given the simple, non-emotional nature of the shot I can't think of a more appropriate style of title.

Emotional / Challenge
I think you met the challenge exceptionally well - a wild bird in it's natural environment. From an emotional standpoint I don't think you are trying to convey a particular emotion - but that's perfectly ok. Not every shot has to be making a statement. What is conveyed, by both the pose and the grassy reeds, is the stealthy nature of this bird.

Summary
I think it's a great shot. Well done on achieving both you highest rating and also highest score so far. Compared to your other recent entries I find this shot better both technically (particularly in detail and sharpness) and artistically.

The Professor
by arlanbart

Comment:
Greetings from the Critique Club

Technical Qualities
As people suggested in the original comments during the challenge - I think there are a couple of technical issues that could be addressed. The most distracting are the shadows of the glasses on the wall and the shadow under the dogs chin. This appears to definitely be a result of using on-camera flash. If you were using an external flash I would suggest either a diffuser of some sort (like a softbox) or bouncing the flash (off the ceiling would work unless you are very close to the dog). Another way of dealing with the background shadow would involve introducing a separate light for the background, but you would want to still keep it darker than the main subject.

There are also the issues of blown highlights on the white beside the dogs nose and slight out of focus on the nose. Decreasing the aperture just slightly (F5.6 or F6.3 maybe) would have given a little more focal depth - I'd only go for a little more because I think having the ears out of focus works well. The blown highlights are more difficult but, again, diffused or bounced light would help to a degree as would slight underexposure - which could then be addressed in an image editor.

Besides those issues I really like the sharpness and detail of the shot - particularly the glasses and hair around the eyes.

Composition / Subject
I think the subject and composition are probably the strongest aspects of this shot. The dog is very photogenic and the tilt of the head, combined with the glasses, is priceless. The relatively close cropping around the head works really well, and the simple background doesn't distract from the main subject. Having both ears pointing up also really adds to the shot - you have a very good model. :-)

Choosing a square aspect ratio for the shot really complements the squareness of the dogs face - leaving an essentially equal amount on each side. This shot would be weaker in either landscape or portrait orientation, so well done on choosing this crop.

Border / Title
I'm a little undecided about the border - it isn't bad but it doesn't add much to the shot either. The title on the other hand is absolutely perfect - Simple, concise and totally appropriate.

Emotional / Challenge
I think it's a great photo of your uncle's dog - I'm sure he was impressed by it. This challenge is obviously quite different to most challenges but I still think you chose well. Oddly, it scored lower than some of your other photo's but I think it is a really good shot. It was obviously a tough challenge - it's hard to score high in a challenge with so many entries.

Summary
I really like the shot - it has wonderful emotion and is also very humourous and fun. I also liked your portfolio entry "Four trees" of the same dog. If you want something to improve upon then it looks to me like you should experiment with your lighting. This same shot without the harsh shadows and overexposure would be awesome. If you have an external Canon strobe (EX380 or whatever they are called) then you are all set - just start pointing it at walls or ceilings instead of directly at the subject. If you want more info or example of the differences then just let me know.

Crane
by marbo

Comment:
Kapow! That's the sound of nailing the focus in his eye... Great job! I think perhaps a little more DOF would have been appropriate to keep more of the beak in focus, but good work regardless.

Kudu Lunch
by thomo

Comment:
Great expression and composition. I would have liked to see this a little larger and perhaps the background (particularly on the right) a little darker. Great work though.

"I am one with the tree"
by garrfoster

Comment:
Great sharpness and clarity on this shot.

Old and New
by MidnightSunset

Comment:
Sorry - I don't see any wildlife (ie: animals) in this shot.

Tranquil Wildlife
by sandabella

Comment:
I like your framing of this shot - placing the bird well into the corner works well although I would have made the gap below and to the left of the bird more equal.

Wildest of Them All (My Sweetheart's Fren)
by doctabrez

Comment:
Is she really "undomesticated" and "living in the wild" ? :-)

A Florida Boardwalk Denizen - White Ibis
by olddj

Comment:
Good work - the composition / cropping works really well. The shot looks a little noisy and soft though. Some work in a program like photoshop (or even picasa) would probably do wonders for this shot.