marissa-046.jpg
by mrsamsa

Comment:
The rhythm created by the turned heads is marvelous. The soft lighting is good. And the blue tone of the shirts against the green grass is great. I like the faming but I do wonder whether the guys on the field deserve just the tiniest bit more head room. In a perfect world, those bottles wouldn't be there.

Tools of a woodworker
by christie3

Comment:
Ironically, it lacks sharpness.

Puzzle beginnings...
by wetland

Comment:
And when you're done playing, you just pack it away in that little box; hehehe.

Interesting choice of subject. I like the low angle light, the partially finished bit and the way it interacts with the box. I find the puzzle peices somehow jumble the photo, and while I don't find the background objectionalble, I cannot help but wonder whether something with a little texture might have been more interesting - even a highly textured sketch paper. It's hard to advocate less negative space, but I wish one were just a little closer so the woodgrain were more evident.

The Last Lock Gate
by Artan

Comment:
The floating slime is quite interesting. Its bright green and the black structural steel work well together. I like the way the water flows diagonally through the photo. The texture made by the green slime on the lock gates interests me and I wonder whether there might have been a stronger picture in here that emphasizes this ( or if perhaps this texture becomes evident in a good enlargement.. ) In any case, I cannot overcome the impression that the subject is a little weak or diffuse or confusing.

Still Life in Wood #1 Desk & Vase
by lyta

Comment:
I formed my opinion of the photo before scrolling down to see the green mat. So my comments will start out being based on that ... I love the tonality of the wood and the fact that it all matches so well. The soft but strong light is perfectly suited to the treatment; it looks especially good on the vase.

The mat adds interesting texture and color. It balances the brass ring. Yet, somehow it behaves in this picture a bit like an insistant child breaking in on a conversation between two septagenarians in their rocking chairs watching the sun set. If the mat must stay for some important compositional purpose ( I'm terrible at composition, so am unwilling to assert a judgement here) then I wonder if selective desaturation or hue manipulation might not soften the loud shade of green to a softer yellower shade that echoes the brass ring. In any case it's a very nice photo.

* Tiny *
by Geocide

Comment:
It's a lovely subject.

Django & Stephane
by pawdrix

Comment:
Lovely. Photos of instruments crop up in challenges with considerable regularity because wooden instruments can be quite beautiful. Rarely is the treatment quite so inspired as this one. The lighting through miniblinds creates wonderful textures on top of the wood. There is a kind of complex visual conversation going on between these instruments that deftly parallels the musical conversations between the musicians for which the photo is named. Extraordinary

Skeleton
by RulerZigzag

Comment:
I love the glowing light. The shot is well framed ( no pun intended.) There is a bit of a sense of clutter to the photo that makes it harder to comprehend.

Home
by Alain

Comment:
I love this simple presentation. Were the challenge something other than 'wood,' I suppose I would assert that the blankness of the left side overbalances the more interesting right.

My old window
by asij

Comment:
Nice use of a mirror. The subject is beautifully lit, framed, and photographed. The weedy backdrop, gratefully, has been cropped right and bottom. And the darkness of the grotto makes the frame stand out well. The left side ot the photo seems too tangled and full of distracting detail to quite work. One wonders whether this photo would not work better taken in fading, cloudy or misty daylight where the shadows are very gentle. Then the lighting might have been managed to de-emphasize the tangle of weeds near the left margin. Perhaps lower light would also allow DOF manipulation more favorable to this goal.