Flowing
by Elaine

Comment:
I keep coming back to this which alone makes it worth a little bump up. Simple but elegant and outside the box, and I love textured photos even if sometimes they break a lot of the 'rules' of 'engaging photography'. What I love here is you've managed to adhere to those rules with the unusual plane of focus and in turn created quite an ethereal and unusual image. Love the colours too.

My favorite mountain
by MargaretNet

Comment:
Just epic. I would love to know the steps involved in getting this so sharp and dramatic. Looks gorgeous and reminds me of home!

Making the Cut...
by NikonJeb

Comment:
We don't see enough candid shots on this site, bonus point for this on top of an interesting subject.

Where the River Ends
by grahamgator

Comment:
Right up my street and I love what you've done with the edit. Looks like an oil painting :)

Taipei City
by GeorgesBogaert

Comment:
Wonderful image of a fantastic skyline. It's a shame it couldn't/wasn't used for the Urban Landscape's challenge as it would have scored highly there I think! But it's also a great image and one of the stronger of the free study. Well done!

Low Tide
by LevT

Comment:
It's clear this location is a favourite of yours and I'm starting to understand why. So much variety and inspiration from just one spot - this beach is clearly an important muse for you. For this shot I have to say it's my favourite so far. I usually don't love people in landscapes and yet here they add such a unique dynamic. All silhouetted, mostly paired off. Their shadows make them seem almost alien. Their composition is almost too perfect to be random, following the same lines as the sea and the shore. What a great image, probably the most interesting and inspiring since I came back!

EDIT You know I finally get what this reminds me of - the work of L.S. Lowry and his famous matchstick men figures in his paintings. I could spend ages looking at each of these little silhouettes and figuring out what they're doing. It's like a Where's Wally of different activities. Look hard you can see surfers, photographers, couples with dogs, someone taking a selfie, I could look at this all day :D

Another world
by Neat

Comment:
I love what you've done with this shot! So unique. And I'm giving a bonus point for what I'm pretty sure is a reference to the 90s video game which shares this POV and somewhat the aesthetic (if I'm wrong here, google a screenshot of it as the resemblance is striking!) Great job, this is what free studies are all about.

Bits and Pieces
by vawendy

Comment:
One of my biggest struggles in this contest was finding interesting angles. This is a great example of how to do it. Thank you and great job!

the old city
by Tiberius

Comment:
The dude in his pants makes it. Love the colours here and the sense of rough, buzzing chaos that is so wonderful about these kinds of cities. Great composition too having that movement from the bikers without letting them block or dominate the shot. My only slight issue is the number of people present suggests the opposite of abandoned, but honestly I don't care that much as it's clear that a large part of the subject is uninhabited.

Frames
by mikeee

Comment:
Unique angle on the challenge. I like it!