Welcome back
by jatcom

Comment:
Superb! I'll also add my voice to the others that this ought to have been several places higher in the running.

Nitpicks that might have turned them but didn't bother me:

- Period clothing, but gel in the hair
- odd creasing in the pants that
- overall softness, and low contrast, especially in the face. Lack of shadows tends to flatten that part of the image a bit.
- the eyes could have used a little punch, maybe boost the blues channel? (legal in basic)

Overall, my impression is of someone who was not on the highest ranks of the court. A very Hollywood type of character who dresses up but definitively lacks a certain polish in everything but his manner.

Very nice shot.

photo2
by Vasilieva

Comment:
I'll second that it is a truly excellent picture of a truly excellent model, but I really don't understand what the virtue is here. Did you mean to submit for 7 deadly sins?

Just because Catholics had a bunch of whacked out self-torture rituals during the dark ages doesn't mean that it has anything to do with anything heavenly. To be honest, just a simple picture of a naked female would be more like heavenly virtues to me.

In addition, I'm not fully convinced that torture was the foundation of this picture. Unfortunately, I really can't figure out what it is. It kinda smacks a bit of Gymnastics training to me, color tones and background aside.

I would be interested to hear the story on the pic. If you wanted an audience, PM me.

It's a shame that you added the text to the bottom. Remember, there are plenty of top-end, pro photographers and quite a few amateurs who put out quality that rivals top-end pro photographers too. We all run the same risks. Photos are occasionally ripped off, but it's quite rare. 640 pixels ain't that much.

If you want to plug your website, feel free to do that in the photo information and you signature.

You can do anything if you just have faith
by json

Comment:
It's true that you have a great illusion here and it's done very well, and your lighting totally rocks, but for me the star of the show is the model.

There is something about him that really speaks a type of faith that is very "Matrix children". He's got a kind of relaxed stance as he sits there in sock feet with a typical retro, 70's/early 80's style haircut that speaks of being totally unconcerned, be it with physics or anything else.

Great capture.

Lust: Song of Solomon 4:5
by ben8jamin

Comment:
Really nicely done. I would have liked the distracting shadows on the bottom cropped off, but that's just me.

Also, I don't think that Solomon's poetry was so much of a sin. He was living at a time when polygamy was permitted, but the Kings of Israel were instructed not to go multiplying wives for themselves. One can assume that this would have meant more about the numbers rather than the act of pursuit.

Super nice pic though. You're a lucky man.

Gazpacho 4 your heart???
by Majanka

Comment:
Nice tribute to the Recipe Challenge.

LoveSwans - Heart making
by Gunnsi

Comment:
Hey, I just thought I'd say that I was impressed by the number of subliminal hearts that showed up in this pic. I think I saw at least 5 or 6 extra hearts in the water.

I like how you used that single swan to really give the feeling that the processing wasn't necessarily so extreme.

The Caped Crusader Within
by GIS_boy

Comment:
Absolutely freakin' brilliant.

I just watched Batman Returns for the first time a few days ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm also a big fan of the animated series which I felt was some of the best animation on TV.

I really like how the colors in the lighting match those in the movie so well. I ripped that movie to watch on my brand new PDA and that was when I realized how dark and tungsteny that whole movie is.

I know it probably would have taken a fair bit of work to work out, but I would have liked the bottom furling of the cape to look a bit better.

I actually liked the uneven earpeices.

Portal
by elsapo

Comment:
What an amazing idea. Brilliant!

Musical Love
by kosmikkreeper

Comment:
It's all about the eye for me. Fantastic.

9.

The Chinese Tunnel Workers
by Robot-Fotomat

Comment:
As a guy who is somewhat in tune with the Chinese culture, I can say that this is a really powerful and excellent photo that really deserves to be a good hundred places up at least in this challenge.

I actually had guessed that they were in China, but I'm guessing now that the conditions in Iceland are rather nice compared to what they would face in their homeland.

Chinese miners work ridiculously dangerously every day (in China it is not uncommon for people to not get days off for months) in conditions completely uncontrolled by any safety regulating organization (the vast majority of mining accidents in China go unreported in China itself, much less in the international scene) in a hopeless situation because they make a pittance in a society that places tremendous value on wealth and a nearly nonexistant value on life. Add to that the ignonimity of working in such dirty conditions and then you see their smile...

Touching.

Potent.

Zhen de fei chang de xin ku.