When it Rains, Wear a Raincoat
by Anachronite

Comment:
Did you ever play Hearts as a kid, the card game. When it looks like you are getting a poor score you try to "Shoot the Moon" which means you try to get ALL the bad points. If you get every one, they turn positive and you win. Looks like you were shooting the moon.

PS _ I had to write a long review of andres Condom photo, I'm glad I didn't pull this one too...

Kit tea (pun)
by Bullwinkle

Comment:
I didn't vote on many to the cliches - ran out of time. I'm just checking to see where my 10s ended up..How did this get way down here?? Could it have been tooo creative??? Beats me.

before & after... Hulk in therapy
by kosmikkreeper

Comment:
I hate it when my favorites end up a the bottom. I was so sure this would make the top three. What happened to all the points????

2 Squared
by boyte1

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club - I apologize for being tardy - I am having a terrible time with computer freeze ups. I am rewriting this for the third time.

Funny story first: I was reading a thread on DPC about how to choose a
perfect photo to submit and one tip read something like this: 6% of
males are color blind so your "study in green" may become a study in
greys. Then I drew this photo from the pile and, guess what? The
comment was wrong. Whether this is a study in green and yellow or a
study in grey and yellow, everyone agreed that it is a great photo!

I have to admit I'm a little out of my element here - Techinique is my
weak point, both in and out of the camera (ie pre and post
processing). So I'll do the best I can and concentrate on the design.

First: the colors...Unusual color combination and therefore all the
more striking. Green and yellow is not a cliche or a favorite by
anyones standards. This different combo catches my attention much more
than, say, blue and green glass would. The yellow and green of the
glass cubes is the same in tone and saturation. The yellow is repeated
in the green cube and the background is a paler shade of yellow. Just
the two colors, Nice. I also suspect that yellow is hard to do because of the
white balance problems with artificial lights.

On to exquisite lighting. This photo is ALL about light. I haven't a clue how
you achieved this but, as a viewer, it doesn't matter. You might want
to diagram your set up for the sake of the photographers. The most
interesting thing about your image is that, while it is about light,
it has no shadows at all. The squares cast no shadows on the back ground. The backgroud itself has no shadows, just some subtle shading. Instead of shadow, the shapes are defined by high lights. The Green box has highlights in yellow and the yellow box has high lights in white. Amazing.

As one commenter said "Gorgeous, nice simple composition". and another
"very simple and elegant design". Look at the design elements. You've
hit on most of them. Texture - The smooth hard glass contrasts with the rough scratchy background. But in a further contrast, the glass looks fluid, it's lines imply movement while the background is static and hard and unmoving. Lines - the lines are lovely. The squares are made up of curved lines. the lines bow inwards and the perspective also takes the viewer into the boxes, but because they are transparent, we are led right through and out again. How about mass, weight, and balance? Yep, you've got them too.

Another thing that I especially like is that there are no visual clues as
to the scale in your image. These cubes could be inches or meters
high, the background could be a dishtowel or a concrete mass. I can't
tell if I am looking into the boxes or through the backsides. This bit
of unreality contributes to the overall design. The photo is both
abstract and representational at the same time.

I'm glad this picture placed so highly in the DPC voting. You deserved it!

Only the disclaimer left to get in before I lose it all in a fourth
computer crash: Please remember that tis is only my opinion and I am
not an expert by any means.

Message edited by author 2003-02-11 22:46:07.

Look here dammit!:-)
by Parentx

Comment:
I'll give you an eight - I had to take off a point for that shadow of the ear that looks like a third ear.

Stella Harmony
by goodtempo

Comment:
I thought I was a grump handing out low scores left and right, Finally I come to one I like! you get a nine for cheering me up and for bad focus.

A Horse is a Horse
by erin_m02

Comment:
Of course, of course

Lovely, a little crowded by the nose

Souvenir
by lionelm

Comment:
Hello from the Critique Club-

Sorry to be so slow - This image is taking me longer than usual' I just keep wondering what those children are trying to TELL me. I know they have a message for me. But they just stare silently.

What should I go after first? The things I like or don't like. I'll start with what I see as flaws because that will be much shorter. Actually there is only one thing that bothers me. I haven't decided whether I really dislike it or if maybe it is effective. The problem is with the perspective. The window has such a great , exaggerated looking up point of view but the pictures of the kids do not. So at first glance it makes them look out of place. But as I stare at it, the ghosts seem to sit up and come alive and look down at me. I think I'd prefer it if they stayed in their windows and had the same perspective as the shutters.

Thanks for the hint. It's snowing. I wish there was more snow. There isn't any on the kids. Can you make another layer and fake some? I think the snow adds something to the mood. Snow is so immediate. It is happening in the present. It enhances the contrast between past and present. Also the snow streaks are moving while the children sit so eerily still and watch it.

Everything else I like.

The point of view is wonderful, looking up. looking back in time. (I have to note that all the critical lines are straight, this is my personal pet peeve, tilted pictures). Three nice sets of lines, balancing each other. The window frame has such strong verticals leading up. The horizontal repeating shutter lines are irregular and contrast with the also irregular bricks. Textures are great. The window looks like I could touch it. The colors are wonderful. Just the two tones of green and yellow. Very unusual choice of color scheme but very effective. The children are slightly brownish like a amberotype (spelling?) and that slight brown cast is picked up in the unpainted chipped bricks.

Wow! What a mood! Yes, the house looks old, and the window looks old too. Perfect place for lots of history and ghosts. I wonder what happened to these two little ones. Something tragic? Or did they just grow up and move away leaving their "child-selves" behind. Lots of stories for the imaginative mind.

I love the way you put each child's eyes on a wider slat in the shutters. THis makes the eyes the whole focal point of the picture. I find myself using the word picture rather than photo because this has the feeling of a painting, or maybe even a dream. The eyes are in those two magic thirds spots. You have obscured their mouths and noses, putting even more emphasis on the eyes. What are they watching? Are they waiting for something? Are they watching what the world has become? The shutters are closed. That is important to the scene. It shuts these silent children off from us, as they are shut off by time. They look spooky, not scarey but a litlle bit critical. I hope you'll let us know what they want to say. Do you even know? or is it meant to be a mystery?

Technical stuff (this is my weak point) all looks fine to me. Focus is good, angle is great, Lighting is perfect, lucky you got a grey day. Ghosts cast no shadows, and it fits that there are no shadows al all in the picture. The subdued look is just right, the subdued colors are just right.

The usual disclaimer: Please remember that this is just my opinion and I am no where near an expert.

Okay, I think that's it. Ellen

Message edited by author 2003-02-07 10:35:38.

Craftsmanship
by Azrifel

Comment:
This was one of my favorites- top three!!! I guess I should have givien it a ten instead of a nine. I love the roof and I love what you did with it. I HATE borders usually but I think this one should be posted as an example of when a border is well done it really adds to the photo! Where did all the votes go? I was sure you'd get a ribbon.

Wall of Windows
by Natasha

Comment:
Hello from the Critique club -

Wow! ! Wow! Wow! Do I have to say more??

THis photo is a classic. Do you think you could have gotten any more textbook design elements into one photo? Shall I point out a few? Line? Exquisite! The straights, the curves. Leading lines? Start at the bottom, shadow leads me in, curve leads me out, swoopy shadow leads me back in, swoopy curve back out. Perfect zig zag and I've covered the whole picture. Shape? Great shapes, mirroring each other in dark and light. Texture? Yep. Pattern? Three different window patterns cantrast and complement eachother without every making the picture busy. Because they are divided by yet another design clasic, shadow. Your choice of black and white gives the shadows a shape and weight of their own, equal to the windows, used to separate and balance the square patterns. lovely. Refection? Yes, the reflections in the larger grid of windows gives them depth and helps create the contrast with the smaller grid of tiles. Perfect.

More? Theres a long list of design elements and you've got them all except color which works by it's absence. How about unity, grouping,placement, balance, contrast, mass? I don't need to point out everything. My personal favorite here is movement and rythm. your picture is like a little dance..or a flag flapping..You took a ten ton wall and made it sway. I love it! Everything in the picture works in it's own right, all add up to the whole.

I am the nittiest of pickers and I can barely see the wire some people complained ot. I think you did an excellent job of camophlaging it, and I love the dangly shadow it casts. Like a strand of hair out of place on a beautiful woman. Without that strand, the scene would have been too perfect, even harsh. A great touch. Also I can't stand an off kilter photo. You worked hard and succeeded in making sure all these tilted lines feel straight.

Technical aspects - all perfect- lighting, focus DOF- post processing, cropping border. Everythings just perfect.

You got a lot of useful comments on this photo. The best images always generate the best comments. Let me just summarize the adjectives for you. Very nice (6). Very well executed. Nice. Perfect. I love it (3). Well done (2). Really cool. Fun. Bravo. Wow. Powerful. Interesting. Great (3). Interesting. Excellent (3). Beautiful (4). Thanks. Gorgeous. Eyecatching. Wonderful(2). Elegant (2). Solid. Strong. Superb. Favorite (2). Good job. I couldn't have said it better. Clap, clap, clap. clap. Stand up and take a bow.

So what should you do now? Find some nit picky way to DQ two more photos? Then you could get the ribbon you deserve. Or get an even better shot next week?

And the usual disclaimer - remember that this is just my opinion and I am not an expert. But a lot of people agreed.

Message edited by author 2003-02-06 10:45:35.