The Santa Maria
by timfythetoo

Comment:
--Trading Post--

HA, I beat you this week by a mere 0.001. I do like this shot quite a bit, but I'd like to see you shadows a bit deeper and darker. Upping the shadows would have done wonders for that noisy sky in the background, and would have probably vaulted you well ahead of mine. Nice work!

St. Joseph's
by DanSig

Comment:
--Trading Post--

Interesting composition. I think that you met the challenge just fine, but you included too much for the voters to look at. Its just a bit busy. A different point of view would have vaulted this one into a much better score.

Night Light for the Weary
by chalice

Comment:
--Trading Post--

First of all, congrats on your highest scoring photograph to date!! I like your choice of subjects here. Many of us shot the city skyline, which I have personally gotten too comfortable with. You didn't. You chose a subject that was a bit out of the box, and it works well. My only critique is that the shadow running down the middle of the frame is very distracting. Perhaps a better position for the shot would have gotten this one into the top 30 or so.

Architectural Rhythm
by adjustabletool

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

First off, always try to include some info about the shot in the Photographer's Comments section. It really helps out when we know what the photographer was thinking and what equipment/lighting/etc. were used, especially when you request a critique. Secondly, welcome to DPChallenge! You have some nice work in your challenges to date, and I look forward to seeing more.

Camera Work/Technical: The first thing that strikes me here is that your focus seems to be off. You did a pretty good job controlling your exposure in such harsh lighting. You lost just a little detail in the shadows, and even less in the bright areas. Nice depth of field usage to ensure everything in the subject area was near focused.

Lighting: This looks like a very harsh lighting condition. There are lots of shadows, as well as some very bright areas. You did a pretty good job with the exposure despite the lighting, but perhaps shooting this at a different time of day would have helped.

Composition/Content: You have chosen a nice, rhythmic pattern here, but it gets lost in the rest of the photograph elements. The parking lot, plants and pole are all distracting from the rhythm itself. I think a different point of view would have improved your score tremendously.

My Opinion: Your photo was scored appropriately as it is captured. With a bit different point of view and a different time of day, this one could have scored better. IT does meet the challenge well, but that is only one element that the voters look at when assigning scores.

repeated curves
by soraya

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

First off, always try to include some info about the shot in the Photographer's Comments section. It really helps out when we know what the photographer was thinking and what equipment/lighting/etc. were used, especially when you request a critique. Secondly, welcome to DPChallenge!

Camera Work/Technical: Great depth of field use to carry the viewer all around and through the frame. Crisp focus and excellent exposure also contribute to this image quality.

Lighting: Great use of natural light to produce a very evenly lit, balanced photograph. Nothing is over or under exposed, and the detail is terrific.

Composition/Content: I really like this image. I have one similar in my portfolio here, but these lines are much better. It is a great image to look at over and again. I may have isolated less of the pattern and stood up some to provide a more dramatic angle to them.

My Opinion: I think this one could have been more dramatic and pulled a bit higher score in BW. Any 6+ score is something to be proud of, and this photo is well-deserving of it. Nice work.

Baby Blues
by shneal13

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

First off, always try to include some info about the shot in the Photographer's Comments section. It really helps out when we know what the photographer was thinking and what equipment/lighting/etc. were used, especially when you request a critique. Secondly, welcome to DPChallenge!

Camera Work/Technical: Great depth of field use and nice exposure. Your darks and lights all have the detail that they need, and nothing is under or over exposed. I think that the focus is just a little off, with more clarity on the hair in front of the eyes, rather than the eyes themselves.

Lighting: It looks like you used natural light for this one. You used it well, keeping the exposure in control, as well as capturing some very nice catchlights in the pup's eyes. I'd like to see a little more balanced lighting on the right side of the frame, but not much is needed.

Composition/Content: Nice composition and pretty good use of the rule of thirds. I think your angle for the shoot could have been decreased just a bit, getting more level with the pup. My only real complaint is that lone hair sitting on the black fabric in the left side of the frame.

My Opinion: I think that this one fits the challenge well. With a little different composition and a bit more lighting, this one could have probably reached the 6 mark.

Dirty Old Knobs
by freakin_hilarious

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

First off, always try to include some info about the shot in the Photographer's Comments section. An old PA doesn't give us much insight into how you prepared this shot. It really helps out when we know what the photographer was thinking and what equipment/lighting/etc. were used, especially when you request a critique.

Camera Work/Technical: This image is nicely seen, and well captured. I like your depth of field use that isolates the front few knobs. The exposure looks nice, and you captured a great tonal range.

Lighting: The lighting seems very nice, with each knob holding its own catchlight.

Composition/Content: Great point of view. I like the tilted composition that you used here, and the rhythmic rows of knobs work well to lead the viewer's eye deep into the frame.

My Opinion: I think that this one scored close to its potential. While this is a very nice photograph, it lacks the wow factor to propel it into higher scores. Voters here look at each image a for a very small amount of time. There are usually about 600 or so images to vote on each week, so it really takes a powerful image to grab the average voter and keep them longer. Vivid colors and strong contrast tend to do better in most challenges. Scoring this one, I would have given it a 6. I think that it is an above average photograph, but needs something else to grab a voter's attention.

Brothers in arms
by Aussie_Bluey

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

First of all, congrats on a top 35 finish, as well as adding to your collection of 6+ scores.

Camera Work/Technical: Excellent, crisp focus, dead on white balance, well exposed and captured. I like the depth of field use that you chose here, as it serves well to isolate your subjects off of the background.

Lighting: Nice use of natural light here to expose this capture. It looks like a cloudy day or early morning as there are no harsh shadows or over exposed areas in shot.

Composition/Content: You captured a great moment between these two animals, and your high score reflected that. I thank that the composition is a bit too centered, and that mom is distracting as part of the background. I understand that it is impossible to script nature, but if you'd had just the two brothers in the frame, and a bit off-centered, I think your score could have been a half point higher.

My Opinion: I like it, and I think that it meets the challenge well. Excellent choice of cliches to use to create a nice overall image. I would liked to have seen some compositional changes, but the score is still well-deserved.

The Kindergarten Teacher
by scarbrd

Comment:
This is a terrific example of what an enviranmental portrait should be. My only complaint is that the teacher is a bit too centered. Wonderful. My first 9 in the challenge!

The right wave...
by Simpa

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

First off, always try to include your shot info. The D70 stores it all in the EXIF data, and it really helps us out when you are requesting a critique on the image.

Camera Work/Technical: Without knowing your settings, I can tell that you had the shutter set fast enough to create a nice stop-motion image. The fast-flowing river and the frantic arm motions of the kayaker are stopped in great position with nice detail. Your WB looks dead on as well.

Lighting: I am assuming that this was an overcast day, as you have wonderfully captured a great tonal range. You colors pop, and you have lost no detail in your darks or your lights.

Composition/Content: Too centered. I think cropping about a third off of the left and just a little off of the top would have provided a much stronger composition. Your contrasting colors work well together, and the subject is very interesting

My Opinion: Also, there are two things to consider when submitting images to a challenge here. First, make sure you meet the challenge. You will get eaten alive if your image depends too much on the title, or if its a stretch from what the challenge details ask for. I know this from experience. Second, voters here look at each image a for a very small amount of time. There are usually about 600 or so images to vote on each week, so it really takes a powerful image to grab the average voter and keep them longer. Vivid colors and strong contrast, which you have here, tend to do better in most challenges. I think that this one relies too heavily on the voters understand of the rhythmic nature of rivers and the sport of paddling. Overall nice capture, but more suited for a different challenge.