GotNuthin
by morg002

Comment:
Hi Ryan,
Greetings from the Critic's Club.

Initial Imression: I was struck by the reflection of clouds in the rails. The lighting is fantastic, and the composition is clever. I admit that for a brief moment the asymmetrical placement of the rails felt a little off to me, but I do believe that the photo is much stronger for it.

Composition & Lighting. The photo creates a strong sense of big, open space. The rails point to a strong point in the photo. I found myself wishing that the trees were gone. The curious thing about them is that they seem to interrupt the wide openness of the photo which is its strong point. I realize you had little choice in their placement...

Technique and Processing. The photo is crisp and clear throughout. A short focal length accentuated the sense of space and enabled all of the shot to be clear, a good choice. I am inclined to believe that black and white or sepia might have been a better choice than color, because the color of the trees would no longer attract the eye as strongly. Advanced editing might have allowed some dodging and burning of the clouds to accentuate their existing strengths. And I would love to see more contrast, texture, and sharpness in the gravel near the bottom of the photo.

Overall: This is a very solid shot. and it was given a good treatment. Some further editing might draw a little more from the image.

I hope you find my opinions helpful. I look forward to seeing more of your work here.
Good Luck,

Steve

CN Rail Station #57
by riley

Comment:
Greetings from the Critic's Club

Initial Impression : The photo strongly evokes a sense of age, of ramshackle development, and of neglect. The sepia treatment enhances this sense.

Composition : Placement of the tracks in the photo draws the eye nicely. The way the poles and electrical lines sort of spiral out from there works well. I really like the sign. There is a bit of a sense of emptiness to the composition. That emptiness works to support the overall effect of the photo. The crop is very goodt.

Lighting, Exposiure & Processing: The focus seems just a tad soft, perhaps it is a consequence of other factors. The lighting is even, but it is a little flat. One of the consequences of flat lighting is that textures are subdued and hard to read. My guess is that more aggressive unsharp masking and some work with curves in Photoshop might bring out texture better. I like the darkness in the sky and the way the clouds work. I understand the motivation to make it look old and moody, but my personal sense is that the whole photo is hurt a bit by there not being some brighter highlight areas in the photo.

Overall: It certainly fits the railroad theme of the challenge. It is an interesting location and this is an appealing treatment.

This is, of course, just my opinion; I hope you find it helpful.
Best of Luck,
Steve Brubaker

Breaking Through
by sibeling

Comment:
A very lovely landscape abstract.

Elan
by arpita

Comment:
Quite beautiful and very unusual. The form, color, texture, and lighting all enhance the spirited shot. Very nice.

The Truth
by macrothing

Comment:
Ha! Not pretty. And sometimes a little difficult to make out from everything else...

A Life on the Streets
by Joey Lawrence

Comment:
Wow: a face that reads like a book. There is sadness and pain and disapointment and grief, anger and loss, and hardship and sorrow. And through all this a smile. Quite lovely, thanks.

The Deal
by rhipster

Comment:
Super!

Drink Me
by taterbug

Comment:
Wonderland. Indeed.

First Beach (Newport )
by melismatica

Comment:
There is something about this photo that makes it seem far afield of the "DPC look." It takes a while to warm up to it, but there is a powerful interplay between man and dog that is easy to find attractive.

Time for my Bath
by MPRPRO

Comment:
The idea here is very clever. Both subject and background are quite beautiful. I find the rocks that frame her head and her body to be distracting.