Windshield Watercolor Photo-Painting
by 777STAN

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

Originally posted by 777STAN: It was a five-second impulse. Grab camera! Without visually composing shot point toward windshield! Click! Put down camera!

My thoughts on the image: Unfortunately, I immediately feel that this is a post-processed snapshot rather than an image that you tool time to compose and enhance with post-processing. Now I do like the watercolor feel that you processed, but over all the image has several flaws that are difficult for the standard voter to overcome.

My ideas for improvement: Clean your sensor. Even without cleaning the sensor, make sure that you remove sensor dust from any challenge entry. Every time. Take time and compose the image. This looks like a typical Georgia fall to me; a scene that I am very fond of. I love the wet asphalt, the golden grass, and the beautiful leading lines you captured. I'd just like to see it with the sky a little less exposed and some time in post-processing to enhance the captured image rather than creating a new image through processing.

Where I would have/did score this entry: I did not vote in this particular challenge, but I surely would have been one of your 3s or 4s. While this is indeed a landscape, I just lose appreciation and interest with images that are over-processed. I do like the foundation of your capture, but I'd like to see it processed more for the image that it was.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide a critique on your entry,
Eric

Straight And Narrow
by power47

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

First of all, congrats on a new personal best. Its always nice to see a new image sitting there atop the previous high scorers. Nicely seen and nicely presented.

My thoughts on the image: I am not normally fan of infrared images. However, I like the capture here in the fact that there are details that scream infrared while the overall image retains a nicely toned black and white feel.

My ideas for improvement: Honestly, as far as a nicely done infrared image, there is hardly anything that I could suggest for improvement. I like the perspective. I like the tones you captured. I like the overall exposure. The composition is surely a great strength of the image as well. It does a wonderful job of drawing me deep into the image.

Where I would have/did score this entry: I did not vote in this particular challenge, but this would have been somewhere in the 7 or 8 range for me, depending on the strength of the overall challenge. I do like it, and I think that the voters scored this one appropriately. Well seen, well captured, and well presented. Nice work

Thank you for the opportunity to provide a critique on your entry,
Eric

Message edited by author 2009-12-04 05:18:10.

Friday's Prayer
by HighNooner

Comment:
Unfair pressures? It looks like a room full of conference goers rather than anything religion based. The photo is nice with great tones, but it relied solely on the title to shoehorn itself into the challenge. Cool shot, but just not on for this particular shot.

Precarious Perch
by jomerner

Comment:
Awesome way to finish the tournament, Jo! Congrats on the win!!

Best Friends
by timfythetoo

Comment:
\

ETA: Not sure what that original \ was all about there. Apparently I was hitting backspace to maneuver around the challenge entries. Anyway, I love the emotion you captured here. They both seem very happy with the current situation. Congrats on the blue!

Message edited by author 2009-11-12 13:35:48.

Good night.
by Marty

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

Well first of all, WELCOME TO DPC. Its one of those places that you will love and hate all at the same time. Welcome and congrats on getting that first entry in!

My thoughts on the image: This is a nice start. While not scored over the midpoint yet, this is still a nice way to begin. I love the warmth you captured on the face of your subject. The subject is also nicely focused and crisp.

My ideas for improvement: I'd like to see a little better composition. While I am no stickler for the 'rules of photography' this one is a little too centered for my tastes. I think that I'd even like a square crop best on this particular capture, thus cropping off some of the emptiness on the left hand side of the frame.

Where I would have/did score this entry: In this particular instance, I agreed with the voters. I voted this one at 5, but it truly wasn't far from pulling a 6 or better. Nice work and again, WELCOME!

Thank you for the opportunity to provide a critique on your entry,
Eric

stoned immaculate
by disassociation

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

My thoughts on the image: Very unique. Like you posted, this is your first experiment with light painting. It is a very fun and interesting concept once you get an idea of which light and exposures turn out which images. You now know what you did for this one and which results followed.

My ideas for improvement: Paint more faster and speed up that shutter a bit. Moving the light slowly and randomly produces vast differences in the light and exposure. Start out with an idea of what you want to paint, the experiment until you get a consistent result. The random movement of the light produced some interesting shadows, but it also left you with some very distracting, blow highlights.

Where I would have/did score this entry: I did vote on this particular challenge, and I scored you at 4. With that in mind, I was in agreement with the voters for the most part. However, this is an interesting start to a potentially strong image. You have a strong idea and a great subject. Now go shoot it again. That D100 paired with the 50mm 1.8 can yield you some tremendous images. That is still one of my favorite old cameras to break out here and there.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide a critique on your entry,
Eric

Red-Bellied Black Snake Pops in to Say Hello
by lccm_82

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

My thoughts on the image: My eye immediately notices the relatively bright exposure of the overall image. While I do think that you meet the challenge, I think the there were some technical aspects of the image that could have surely been executed better.

My ideas for improvement: I am guessing that you are running that camera on full-auto mode. Am I wrong? My first suggestion for improvement would be to switch to manual and play with those controls. Looking through your first few entries, they all seem to have very similar mistakes. First and foremost, pay attention to your primary focal plane. With an image such as this, I'd like to see the primary point of focus directly on the eyes of the snake. Here, your focus seems to be on the ground be low the reptile. Practice with toning that flash down. Here, you relied solely on the flash itself to light the entire image. Open up that aperture, slow the shutter, up the ISO and let the flash provide a soft, gentle fill rather than such a harsh blast. I'd much rather see some warm tones of the surrounding, natural light rather than the flat, white light you produced.

On a different note, also take time to let the voters that have taken the time to comment on the image that their comments were helpful. We really like to have our little boxes checked.

Where I would have/did score this entry: I did vote and a gave it a 4. There are many areas for improvement from a technical standpoint that would help this vote grow considerably. Keep shooting and keep posting.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide a critique on your entry,
Eric

The Fruit Shop Owner
by ankursomani

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

My thoughts on the image: Your image is full of vibrancy and interesting colors. My eye is immediately drawn to the various fruits and pulled into the image. The colors are terrific and captivating, which, as other voters have mentioned, is also the primary flaw of the image.

My ideas for improvement: This would have scored much better, in my opinion, with the owner cropped out and the image submitted to artificial lighting. DPC voters lover vibrant colors and seem drawn to them like mosquitoes to those bright, purple bug zappers. As mentioned earlier, the owner himself is difficult to find in the image. However, the fruit is lit with nice, even, artificial lighting.

Where I would have/did score this entry: I did vote on this one and it pulled a 5 from me. I like the flow of the image as well as the bug-zapping colors, but the challenge was missed in my opinion. Looking back at it now, I would have probably have hit it with a 4.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide a critique on your entry,
Eric

Onwards!
by Bazlord

Comment:
Hey there from the Critique Club

My thoughts on the image: You did a fine job meeting both ends of the challenge. You captured the into and out of very nciely. I also like the subject matter as it has a very different interest from images usually presented here. I also like your depth of field use in an attempt to hold the viewer's eye on the primary subject. There are, however, some technical and compositional flaws that I'd like to see addressed to make this a stronger image.

My ideas for improvement: Again, I like the subject matter, but I'd like to see the presentation just a bit different. The object at the bottom right of the frame is terribly distracting to my eye. I definitely need that cropped a bit better. Also, I would personally like to see a just a slight bit more space between the frame and his nose. Cropped as it is feels very tense. I also believe that the composition would have been a great deal stronger with a slight rotation in your point of view. I'd like to see the soldiers at the rear bleed over and off of the frame on the right side. Your lighting is also reversed from what you need it to be. A fill flash would have greatly helped hp;d my eye onto the primary subject rather than the brighter, busier background.

Where I would have/did score this entry: I did vote in this challenge, and this one hit me right in the middle of the road. I was one of your 71 5s for this one. There was a great deal of interest, and you did a fine job meeting the challenge well. There were just too many execution flaws in my mind's eye to pull a much higher vote from me. I think that the image, as it is, was scored fairly appropriatly by the voters.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide a critique on your entry,
Eric