Amazing!
by eschelar

Comment:
:) Thanks.

Strangeghost: There is a noble hope in this picture that others will have found books as fascinating as I have in my life.

I grew up as an avid "DEVOURER" of books and many are the times when I felt like this inside over something I have read.

I would hope that there are other literary sources that can make a person, be it a young male or otherwise that can extract a response that are somewhat more deep than a girlie mag or a peice of jewelry.

As someone else who works in the education field (I'm an English teacher), one would hope that we might share the same hope that books themselves are worthy of such a reaction, and the book in question is different for each individual...

Nonetheless, I'm grateful for your comment. Definitely something to learn from it... And that's what I'm lookin' for. :)

Bye, bye my friend...
by timlu

Comment:
Very nice technically and one of the few shots that's actually touching in this challenge. I was moved just by the thumbnail.

Footprints Left by an Angel
by jayjay06

Comment:
Hey. Condolences. I've got a cousin who went through this with his first child. She lived 5 days.

They were pretty happy for the first 2 years of marriage before this, but it was a bit of a downhill slide for them after that.

I just found out that they split up in the last few months.

Having one that survived will be your source of strength. Work hard to keep happy.

Drink Up!
by erkinne

Comment:
Awesome idea. This is totally fantastic!

Almost got a fave...

Who is sitting there?
by DJS

Comment:
Wicked awesome image. Would have been my pick for the winner had I voted.

Fave.

Smuggling Oranges The Hard Way
by alphonzo

Comment:
Only a truly zany individual would think of smuggling oranges.

Very well done.

I think that a bit more overall brightness and contrast would help things. Especially in the Orange/balls.

I've been trying to learn how to use USM to perk things up a bit after the resize too. Seems that bringing it down in size sacrifices a fair bit of detail.

Birds-w-frame640.jpg
by shaver

Comment:
Really great pic, Fantastic colors. Super DOF.

There's a little something that bothers me about that Pampas grass on the Island.

I wonder if you have tried to slice it down to just under the bottom edge of the Island to make a Pano-like shot. There is some loss, because that pampas is awesome, but try it and see what you think.

It certainly won't look any better here due to the 640 limit, but a print might benefit in some ways.

I am wondering if you shot with your 5D on this one or was this a 20D shot?

...of flavor combinations
by AzCKelly

Comment:
I love the color combination here. Good eye for this.

Forbidden
by smyk

Comment:
Hilarious shot.

I love that ring on her finger.

I find this amusing because I was actually just speaking with someone this evening who just finished school at a private catholic school in Belize. She told me that many of the nuns got pregnant in the 7 years she was at the school. And seeing as there was only one man on campus, they all suspected it was the "father".

In the words of Lucien Vinet, former catholic priest, paraphrased, "It's neither natural nor scriptural to require abstinence and such naturally leads to a search for other outlets."

Nicely done.

50's Pearls in The Dark
by Krisby

Comment:
I agree on the cropping suggestion, I say that this pic is MUCH better with a crop right down to the hairline.

The "harsh" lighting is what drew me to the picture. I believe the correct term is actually "Dramatic". ;)

What has happened here with the colors is fantastic. The subtle muting of everything is very beautiful. I can still tell that she is a blonde.

I almost wonder if perhaps she has green eyes to match? I can't really tell. That would be the one thing that I would seek to work on. Is it possible to bump the greens just a hair? Play with the color channels just a bit. You don't want to love the soft coloring, but if there was a way to bring out the color in her eyes....

I don't agree that red lipstick would have made this photo. I like it very much just as it is.

On the subject of the Challenge though, it looks like the pearls have lost the center of attention for the pic. Tough call as this really works as a portrait. Don't know what it would look like if you increased the DOF to get those pearls...

I would have given it a 9 or 10 had I been voting.