Wok
by Keith Maniac

Comment:
Great colours, good title, lots of interest.

The trip home
by marvin

Comment:
Really nice - great lead in line, takes you into the image and I almost feel like I'm actually moving:)

Keeping Pace
by elee3009

Comment:
I really like this: Great motion blur, fantastic post processing, wonderful colour...

The last breath
by Rino63

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

Looking at your portfolio it seems you have a conceptual approach to photography. This image is almost an abstract, having a symbolic meaning. To be honest I have no idea what is in the glass; is it a paper flower, or tissue paper, or a real, dried up flower? Does it matter? My logical mind needs to know. My creative mind doesn\'t care.

Having just watched England being cheated out of a place in the semi-finals of the world cup, I fully appreciate the feelings that go with \'desolation\'. So ironically, I can look at your image through desolate eyes. And it does match my mood. My joi de vivre has been sucked from me, and like your glass and flower I have collapsed to the ground, in slow motion. It is not simply about a meaningless football game; the game serves to remind me of all the times in my life I have felt desolate, let down and deflated. Times when this image would have mirrored my mood perfectly.

As TheMegalomaniac commented, the way you have captured the motion blur at the top of the image rather than at the bottom, is wonderfully unexpected and makes the viewer stop and think. Symbolically, it captures that aspect of life, where the years and time seem to fly by at the speed of light, becoming a blur. People often report their lives flashing before their eyes when their lives are in grave danger, again your blur illustrates that perfectly. So the blur is life, and the still image at the bottom is indeed the last breath, as the glass has not yet hit the ground, but that is only milliseconds away.

The colours are well thought out. The drab brown of the background and foreground is perfect. To me it looks like soil; soil in a graveyard, waiting to accept the dried up shell of what once was full of life. The pastel reds and orange of the flower are a lovely contrast to the starkness of the soil. But they are only pale imitations of the vibrant colours the flower once had, when it was full of life. The dried up, paper texture of the flower is only a pale imitation of the smooth, velvety texture it once boasted.

A lovely, emotive, poetic image.

the emptiness within
by GentleSoul

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

First, congratulations on a personal best;)

As an aspiring writer, I tend to look for stories when I critique. The story I get with yours, is that this person is sitting in a cell, where his guards or captors never turn off the harsh lighting; they never let him see daylight and they never let him sleep. After a while this tends to send people mad and make them ill. That yellow/green colour cast in the image reinforces this.

I personally like the perspective you have chosen; the distance between the camera (ie viewer) and the young man, again reinforces the sense of loneliness and isolation. That the image is taken from the floor, symbolically tells us the man has hit rock bottom, he cannot get any lower. The perspective also brings the walls closer together creating a feeling of claustrophobia.

I think a little subtle burning around the edges of the image might create more of a dark feeling, I'd also like to see a B&W version;)But other than that it's a great effort;)

Dusk in the valleys
by KHolt

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

This is a wonderful, atmospheric landscape that fits the challenge perfectly. This is the type of place where we can escape the noise and distraction that goes with modern life. Where the only noise we can hear, is the occasional bleat of a sheep, the whisper of the wind, and the click of the shutter.

The eye is led into the image beautifully by the light at the bottom of the image. Like a river it leads us through and into the image creating depth. Where the hills meet the light gives way to soft mist, which takes us even further into the scene. The eye is then drawn up towards the setting sun, then back to the light at the bottom - creating lovely movement.

There are lovely textures creating interest - the sheep, the rocks, the grass,and those wonderful 'tyre mark' type of clouds crossing the sun.

The lighting on the nearest hill gradually gives way to shadow, again creating depth and interest.

The colours are subdued and totally appropriate for the mood and the story you are telling. You have used your filter extremely well.

Well done;)

Lookin' for a wee bit o' luck...
by DemonLlama

Comment:
LOL!!

Double, double toil and trouble...
by RKT

Comment:
Rachel:) I love that quilt on the wall!! I think your cats are ready to do movies:))

Troll !!!
by taterbug

Comment:
Hilarious!!!!!

Acidic enough to eat through metal...
by Tygerr

Comment:
Clever....with nice detail.