The Tree of Life
by nickyb

Comment:
Voted earlier coming back to comment now.

Behold! Yggdrasil, the world tree I presume? I love the beams of light streaming through the branches and that starburst sun that appears near the tree tip. The parting of the clouds makes me think of 'parting the mists of time'. Mist and clouds can invoke the idea of something/somewhere being enchanted or magical. Not sure about the processing - it seems a little harsh 'edged' as that it adds a harshness or grunge look. The two birds are a little to symetrical and just flipped & tilted. I think it would look better if either two different bird silhouettes were used or if you had them as different sizes (one near, one far). Lastly is the color scheme. I think that plays into the 'harshness' I feel when looking upon the composition. I has a lot of hard contrasts that makes it hard for the magic of the scene to shine through. The Tree of Life or World Tree makes me think of green and the color symbology that goes with it. There is no green to symbolize/invoke Nature, renewal, youth, or spring. Color can help strengthen imagery.

resignation of dreams
by PennyStreet

Comment:
Voted earlier coming back to comment now.

I am trying to see what the you as the photographer/artist is trying to convey here. I guess with the hazy edges that invokes the dream state - nothing is crystal clear sharp or so it seems in dreams. Not exactly sure what the main element is in the shot other than it looks to be an office setting with closed 'teller' type windows. If so, the the meaning I can glean from this is that whatever hopes & dreams one has is now closed and removed from reach. That is my best 'reading' of this image which may or may not be what you were trying to get across to your audience.

Every Day Magic
by mrbig65

Comment:
Voted earlier coming back to comment now.

Try, try as I might, I see no 'magic' in the every day you present. I looked for that added bit of interest - the type that makes you do a double take because one sees an ordinary scene but there is just something else there that makes it unique. Perhaps you see but I failed. I looked for the special light that happens at the golden hour/magic hour but did not find it. I looked to see if someone was in the window, but no one is there. I looked to see if the shadows on the wall held a clue, but that cast no light on my search. So perhaps ...it is not in the shot itself but the sentiment/point that the photographer wants/tries to make - each day of living is a gift and therein lies the magic.

Banana Split
by P-A-U-L

Comment:
Voted earlier coming back to comment now.

Who needs to cut fruit when you have magic? Sprinkle a little magic on any fruit and it will be cut into nice even slices. Peel that banana! Its pre-sliced so you can instantly place the pieces in your fruit salad or cereal bowl - no knife required!:-) Lighting is great, the colors are spot on and the detail in the banana is fabulous (the texture and shape does not meld into the white backdrop but pops off perfectly) I also like how you laid the banana on a diagonal so that it cuts across the composition on a diagonal adding visual interest.

Hello? What magic, Doc? ... This time me house IS ORBITING EARTH!!!
by Tiberius

Comment:
Voted earlier coming back to leave comments now.

First off - great levitating skills - fabulous how you can get off the ground like that;-);-) Lighting is fine and the expression is great - he has a very surprised look. While good there is potential for the composition to be even better in my opinion. The rug is a strength and a weakness. Strength because the vertical lines of the rug lead off to the horizon point and as such is a subtle draw for the eye to follow inwards into the composition. Its weakness is the color - that bright pink/red is glaring and tends to distract from your main subject. With expert is was possible to change the color to something of a deeper, richer tone - the easiest would have probably been a deep scarlet red but I think a earth tone would be better; chocolate brown or maybe a forest green to complement the golden brown tones of the floor. I know that the room is representive of the norm of everyday living but some things are better off moved out of the picture composition so as to not clutter it up so much. The wires, stand and extra rug in the top left corner 'clutter' the scene and act as distracting elements that draw some attention away from the main subject. Lastly, I think that a vertical orientation would have helped strengthen the picture rather than a horizontal. The reason is that with vertical you would give the eye the illusion of height...and the feeling that this gent will continue to travel up till he hits the ceiling.

Magnolia-Magic
by BrianR

Comment:
Voted earlier, coming back to comment now.

How cool! Very neat idea! Love the idea of the flower being a floating island and the yellow center cascading down like a waterfall to pool into the one petal. The composition has much potential to jump out of being just good to great if some elements are strengthened. First, I would get rid of the border - it does very little to compliment the composition; rather it detracts from the illusion the flower is a floating island or oasis. Next I would recommend a bit of layering and blending to make the flower more flush with the surface of the water. The lighting is off in the composite. The water, boat, and sky are all darker than your main subject. Lighting on the main subject or backdrop has to be even for the two to go together as one. I highly recommend that you take the pictures roughly around the same time of day. The much harder way is to play with Gamma RGB, dodging & burning, and Shadows/Highlights/Midtones adjustments but that might prove very difficult to achieve the very same or close too similiar lighting conditions. The waterfall is good but can be better if you feathered the selection more so that there is more a even transition from yellow center to the blue flow of water. The petal has a natural scoop that you could very easily select some blue water, feather it to avoid hard edges, and fit it into the petal using layers so you can erase what goes over the lines. The two boys can be selected from the scene with the crashing waves and then placed into the petal pool. To me, the bee really adds nothing to the scene as that I see the strength of the imagery lays in the magic of the magnolia being an island playground.

Wicked Witch of the West
by stantheman1313

Comment:
Voted earlier, coming back to comment now.

You have captured some nice detail in the face and hair. Lighting is good. There are a few blown highlights on the cheeks that can be fixed with cloning and layers to even the tones out. While good the composition has potential to be better. First, I think an even closer crop to just be an head shot would be better. The inclusion of the bodice really does not add anything to the overall composition and the confetti sparkles on her front look too sparse really give the illusion of green skin. The strength in the composition lies with her face - bring your audience in closer - the eyes are windows to the soul after all. As far as the title - I don't see anything 'wicked' about her in the shot itself. "Show don't tell". She does not fit the stereotypical imagery of a witch nor does she really have a wicked/evil smile; rather she has a nice smile. She is far more attractive and does not have a hook nose nor green skin that is widely depicted of evil witches:-) Your model has a look more akin to the green fairy, dryad, or mother nature even - that would have been a better choice in title to complement what we see in the composition.

Dark Arts Defence
by caba

Comment:
Voted earlier, coming back to leave comments now.

Perfect subject for Magic & Mystery: Harry Potter:-) The idea and effort is good but there are some things that could have been done to strengthen the visual appeal of the imagery. First, is position and arrangement of elements. It is good but can be even better. If you made the book larger to dominate the bottom right corner and then had the bird pages fly off to the top left corner you would have the visual interest of a diagonal 'leading line' for the eye to follow. Stars are a nice touch for it invokes the idea of magic being cast. The pages flying out of the book like birds are both a strength and weakness. Strength, because it adds visual interest and shows the pages magically taking flight. Weakness, because they appear flat & glaringly stark with no shadows or shading to give the illusion that they are there and not just pasted in. The pages should have words or printing on them but again they are stark white making it harder to believe that they are 'there' in the scene. Taking some shots with printed pages and correct lighting in 'v' formation to mimic the motion of flight and position from the book would have helped the composition greatly.

Night Mare
by dtremain

Comment:
Voted earlier, coming back to comment now.

I really like the motion blur here for it adds to the imagery to dreams being in motion, fluid, and in flux; things shift in dreams/nightmares. You have captured that aspect perfectly methinks. But I do think it would be an even stronger composition if you pulled back to include the full body of the main horse - to see the full motion of the legs and mayhap perhaps the tail in motion. Just a personal thought, dreams and nightmares I feel are 'wild' and free. The main horse has a bridle (I think that is what it is called) which dispells the imagery of wild and free turning this imagery into something tame. I know you probably had very little control over what the horse(s) are wearing thus it is included. However, it could have been removed with the expert editing but of course that may or maynot be more trouble than worth.

Branded And Exiled
by jagar

Comment:
Voted earlier, coming back to comment now.
Love the forest backdrop - very scenic. Perfect for a storybook scene or fairytale. Wonder what this gent did to be exiled - that is a story I am sure will be told with the next page of the storybook:-) The scene show some domestic life that he lives with him gathering leaves. However, I wonder just what he is going to do with the leaves and branches given the the hut has no visible chimney to get rid of smoke should he use it for a fire. The Hut/cottage adds interest, but there is just something that does look quite right - it doesn't look quite married to the scene. I just can't quite put my finger on what exactly that is. Hmmm, maybe it is that with the scene so bright the totally dark interior of the doorway seems out of place. With that amount of light I should be able to see some portions of the interior, but it is pitch black. Still, an above average composition that should do well.