The Real Matrix
by goc

Comment:
Unofficial Extra Critique Club Comment

I think it is something to do with some sweets from childhood called Spangles that makes me love this colour - I have at least two challenge entries using this shade;) Or may be I'm in the matrix? So I'm in love with your entry before I even start!

There are so many different textures here: That lovely moire type pattern on the metal is really nice. The rivets on the right hand guard rail are nicely highlighted. The vertical lines on the right wall. The glass and reflections of the left hand wall and the stippled ceiling tiles. A true selection box!

The eye is definitely drawn towards the light here, as though it's as escape route from the matrix! The different lines do make you stop and look along the way out though, so the image holds the viewer's attention.

The focus is wonderfully crisp and the septh of field does it's job well.

As for meeting the challenge - some architect obvioulsly put a lot of thought and design into this small space; to say it doesn't scream architecture is a little harsh.

A wonderfully interesting image!

Détermination
by Simpa

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

A sure sign of success is having a statue dedicated to you, showing that you left your mark on history, so good choice of subject.

My first observation is that the statue itself is very dark, so we see little real detail. But it's also too light to be a silhouette. So it ends up in no man's land. I don't know if this was what you intended.
If you had chosen a different time of day so that it was illuminated by the natural light or a higher ISO, the image would be more powerful.

You have placed the statue in the middle of your image, which tends to make it static. Take a look at photographs you admire and observe where the photographer places their main element.

The building behind him is leaning into the image, this together with the tree distracts the eye from the statue and creates an imbalance between the left and right sides of the photograph. Moving around the statue and experimenting with different angles would help eliminate busy backgrounds.

The green tint is I think to give a verdigris copper effect? But because the statue is dark already, the green tends to darken it even more.

But it's an interesting take on the challenge.

They got me!!! Won't make it to the line
by marcellieb

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

I love rugby! That tackle looks a tad high and illegal though!

I suspect here that you took this with your 300mm lens from quite a distance then cropped and re-sized to get a closer image and then tried to compensate with sharpening? This has resulted in an over sharpening that gives the players an odd demonic look - which oddly I quite like. They do sometimes turn into demons out there on the field:)) This has cost you highly with the voters, as you probably realise;)

I like the composition - the players coming in from the right gives a great sense of movement and action. The player̢۪s expressions even with the demon eyes, gives drama to the action. I love all the arms, hands and legs flying about, it gives a sense of the chaos that often manifests on the field.

Cropping out more of the black to make a tighter image would make it more powerful.

I think some voters also felt the failure aspect of your image was tenuous, but I think you got away with it;)

If only you had got closer to avoid the resizing - perhaps next time you could disguise yourself as a rugby player and nip on to the field to catch the action and slip off again unnoticed?:))

Message edited by author 2006-06-06 13:09:47.

Wedding
by pcphotos

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

Sometimes when we take images they can mean more to us, than to those who view them. With this image you personally knew the context of the image, but the voters didn't.

Shells are not often associated with weddings, so I'm guessing there was a beach theme or something similar? Or they got married abroad and this was their reception at home?

Again candles are usually at the church perhaps and may be as a centre piece to a table, but here they look out on their own with no context...In other words, you knew it was a gift table at a wedding, but the voter really has to work hard to make the association.

Gifts actually on the table may have helped, but it's empty. And the photo on the table is a couple dressed in ordinary clothes, not wedding clothes. So the only clue to it being a wedding is your title.

Your depth of field doesn't work here. Is your camera on auto or manual?Those flowers are very out of focus and I'm not entirely sure where you intended the focus to be? If you used a smaller aperture you would get a greater depth of field so that more of the image would be in focus. If you are not sure about this, just ask on the forums, people here are always willing to explain or point you in the right direction.

Perhaps if you had bent down and taken the image from a lower perspective, it may have improved your score.

Good luck in future challenges;)

Despite Years of Sweat Equity
by TomMMD

Comment:
Hi From the Critique Club!

Ok, you know what the main problem was here;) I like scenes like this, and the idea was good, but without the sign being legible, the story you were trying to tell got lost.

I too have problems (who knows why) keeping the camera horizontal, and you rotated to compensate, but it still needs a little more?

The colours are soft and muted, with those nice tans, blues and blacks, creating a calm scene. The lack of people and things on the tables adds the feeling of emptiness.

The composition is a little busy, but that's what makes images like this more interesting. I might have cropped the chair back at the bottom of the image as it's distracting.

The lighting seems a little flat, but again that adds to the mood of closure..if only we could have seen those signs;)

broken dream...
by Llambo

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

This is a lovely candid that's perfect for the challenge.

The expression on this young man's face of that exact moment of failure and despair has been captured perfectly. The emotion is there in his face, his eyes and his body language. It's meaning is universal and needs no explaining.

The toning works really well with the football shirt, and as a way to simplify the message even more - making the image more powerful.

I actually like the grain,it adds grityness. And thank the photography gods that you didn't try to neat image it;)

I don't mind his elbow being out of shot, as I know he has an elbow:), and the eye is drawn to and kept on that pained face.

A near perfect image for the challenge!

Surviving in the cold
by lastef

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

My initial reaction to this was that I wasn't quite sure if the bird is dead or not!

Those eggs are a wonderful green, especially against the red of that poor chick. The oranges and browns of the branches and nest are also really nice.

I can see why you left that wonderful twisted branch in the image, it has lovely colour, texture and shape, but as one of the other voters stated, it distracts the eye a little from the nest which is the main focus.

The focus also seems to be sharper on the branch that the eggs and chick, so a smaller aperture or moving in much closer would fix that. It would also emphasize the snow more, which is a more essential part of the story here, than the branch.

This is one of those scenes that we rarely come across, well done for capturing it!

Celebrate Success
by kaidaehnke

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

Another Champagne image, I think most members entered the success challenge just to give themselves an excuse to drink the bubbly stuff:))

First impressions: I like the close up. The angle of the bottle creates more interest than a straight up and down shot. The angle also creates a half and half image, creating a diagonal running from bottom left to upper right, giving a sense of balance.

At first I found the blue on the ice and on the top of the bottle a little distracting, but then I noticed it plays well against the brown of the label.

You've caught the highlights on the label well.

That upper right hand corner though is little lost...if it were either total black, or we could see the ice against it, it might have been better. As it is, it's neither one or the other.

I know how hard it is to capture ice, but a smaller aperture may have sharpened it up more.

A good quirky take on Champagne.

Success is a happy Marriage, 25 years already
by Thai

Comment:
Hi from the Critique Club!

This is indeed an image that says success. We have many such traditional celebrations and symbols, but in a world where divorce rates are increasing, 25 years of happy marriage is something of a success.

The first thing I notice about this image is the red background. Whilst it is the colour of love, it seems a little overpowering; on my screen it actually hurts my eyes a little to look at it. And because the amount of red negative space is almost equal to the positive space, they almost compete for attention.

Compositionally, your still life elements, create a nice triangle shape, which is pleasing on the eye. The eye is led up the image from the streamers, to the glass to the top of the bottle; then down to the glass and candle, creating nice movement.

Your focus is spot on creating a sharp, clear image and you have dealt really well with the lighting.

The only improvements I would suggest would be to tone down the backdrop and perhaps create more depth by moving some of the objects back more, to create a more 3 dimensional feel.

A nice, symbolic image.

bianca30.jpg
by librodo

Comment:
Soft and delicate.