In Flight (Challenge #11)
by GeneralE

Comment:
First, kudos to you in capturing this bird (or any bird for that matter) with full wing extension and with no motion blur. It is not easy for they move at roughly a rate of 25 feet per second - I have tried for the better part of a year on and off to get a good shot of a hawk in flight to no avail. Now onto the critique. As I mentioned you got a great capture of this bird in flight but to truly make it stand-out and have wow factor it has to showcase the details of this seagull. The underside of the bird is too dark for the viewer to fully appreciate all the details in the color shades on the bird not to mention the full complex textures of the wings/feathers. Lighting and luck are the key ingredients into turning this into a wow shot instead of an average shot. An underbelly shot generally won't do it for the underside is in shadow. A side profile shot or top view would be best for the natural lighting is illuminating all the lovely details for you. Looking at the original you were emulating it shows the viewer with sharp clarity all the details of the wings from the three rows of feathers to the various colors in the wings to the details of the head. Now the luck. Well that comes from being there at the right time to capture the moment. It will take a lot of luck and patience, but in the end it will pay off.

Monochrome Tribute: Ducatista's "On the Edge"
by elizadeb

Comment:
I know that not every monitor is calibrated the same (and I have gotten mine close to calibrated to the scale that occurs at the bottom of this text box during voting) but on my screen the image appears too dark for me to fully appreciate all the details. You caught a nice gleam on the surface of the blade but the bottom right hand portion of the blade and the handle fade into the black backdrop. Mayhap adding another light source to the right hand side and angled to illuminate the handle and right half of the blade would even out the lighting and show us more detail. Next, I don't think that the B&W composition really complements the overall image. Yes, it does showcase texture and details but sometimes color can add a visual punch to the photo composition. I am guessing by the textures on the apple that it was of the red delicious variety. If correct, then wouldn't that punch of deep red (that would invoke the idea of the color of blood) look better balanced on the sharp edge of the knife? I am thinking that the red would visually pop off the silver of the knife and the black background. Not to mention the red of the apple will just heighten the viewer's awareness of the sharpness of the knife for the color invokes the thought of blood.

Factory Accident? by Jacko #66937
by Node

Comment:
Hmmmm, I have to bluntly say that there is some room for improvement in your composition. There are areas that really need improvement for this image to get the polished look you are going after. My first observation is that the lighting is uneven such that some elements are better exposed than others. The left side of the can is so overexposed that there is no detail in showing any edge of the can and it blends into the background. It may be due to overexposure with letting too much light in with a large aperture (2.4-4) or a long shutter speed. Try some test shots to see which combination of aperture and shutter speed work to correctly expose all elements in your photo. Try closing down the aperture to a 4 or 5.6 and a faster shutter speed and work from there. The light source shining brightly on that reflective surface of the can is also a contributing factor in the overexposure look to it. You might want to try diffusing the light by bouncing it off another reflective surface or holding up a thin cloth a foot or two away from the light source to diffuse the light, or build a light tent Super Simple Light Tent to evenly illuminate all elements as well as reduce/eliminate any shadows. Next the choice of elements can play greatly into making the shot look polished or look poorly executed. The choice of the broken pineapple or pear half just doesn't let that 'eyeball' fit/sit right. If the fruit had an indentation (like peach halves or even apricot halves) that it would fit into or a hole like the pineapple circles have it would look better. The eyeball curls and makes it instantly noticable that it is printed on paper. Placing it on a surface that will not squeeze it so that it can lay flat would improve the visual impact by making it look more 'real'/surreal. Lastly a more flat and reflective surface on the can top would be better for it would reflect the eyeball and fruit back increasing the visual impact. The easy pop top can's don't generally have that surface so you would most probably have to use the regular cans and open it with a can opener to get that more reflective surface. I am not trying to be overly critical for I do hope this helps you in your journey to improve.

You Are Never Alone (challenge "All Alone") by Dufus
by holdingtime

Comment:
You have some wonderful color of warm yellows and oranges in this composition. However there are a few areas that need improvement to improve visual appeal. I know Mother Nature is difficult to work with - she never seems to co-operate when you want the shot to be just so:-) I think that the composition showing the full brightness of the globed sun simply does not complement the shot. That strong orb of light washes out many of the details in the surface of the ocean and the bottom half of the sailboat if it is not exposed correctly. Not to mention it really dominates the scene because our eye is immediately drawn too it and then we look away because of it's brightness. Hmmm, perhaps closing down the aperture to an 8 or higher would get some glints off the ocean surface (for here it looks a flat orange with no surface texture to speak of) and the silhouette of the boat on the surface mayhap might be stronger with more definition to make out the details of the whole boat (I can only see the sails clearly). If closing down the aperture doesn't work effectively I think it might have been better timing to take the shot with the sun behind the cloud or just barely peeping out. You might get lucky and have some beams of light shooting forth out of the cloud work thereby making the composition even more visually interesting.

The Egg Yolk (by JMS - Blue Ribbon, February 2003)
by sfalice

Comment:
I like the color tones in the yolk with that nice fade from bright yellow to an outer orange. The bubbles around the yolk throw me off a bit as that I think that there are too many small ones rather than the few larger ones of the original. Too many clustered there makes it seem too busy for what is a simple, clean and minimilistic shot. The bubble on the outer edge is a bit too out of focus and I think it needs to be sharper. I would try a smaller aperature (thinking 6.3 or higher) and slower shutter speed (be sure to have it on a tripod to keep the camera steady while exposing the shot & a low ISO like 50-100 would be good too to avoid image grain if this is shot indoors with low light) I also think that the blue of the grooved plate needs to be illuminated more to show off some of the rich color it has for it looks a bit flat and dark. I also think that if you had moved the yolk further down the curve of the yolk would be 'echoed' with the grooves that spiral around it. That would make the composition more visually interesting. It would look like the grooves are further 'ripples' away from the center yolk. Hmmm, come to think of it you know what this composition makes me think of? The yolk is the sun and the grooves of the plate are the planetary revolutions around it.

"Bearded Dragon" by bvoi
by Snake

Comment:
You have some nice details on the textures but your light source illuminates the lizard with a harsh light that also throws some deep shadows on your background. Those shadows are a bit distracting. I am going to hazard a guess that you used flash at a close range (say 3-4 feet or less from your model). The harsh lighting really does not flatter the lizard or give the composition a good dynamic range of contrasts and tones. Either stand 6 feet or farther (the effectiveness rate of a flash decreases exponentially after 5-6 feet) from your subject and use zoom to get close or do away with the flash and use natural light from outside. Hmmm, another method you could use is the underexpose/flash fill method to get nice details and contrast in tones not to mention a wow factor. The Little Albino is one good example of the method. This same photographer talks about the method in #4 on the list of Getting the right exposure Generally I have used this method by closing down the aperture to 4.5 and a shutter speed of 1/800 then used the flash to fill in what would have been underexposed (Note that it only works effectively if the subject is 5 feet or less away from you should you use the flash unit on your camera). You might need to play around with the settings to see which works because your light conditions will also play a big factor in getting correct exposure. Oh, and if you do use the Underexpose/Flash Fill be sure that your background is far away from your main subject so that you do not catch shadows upon it (with your composition I would try 4 feet or more away). What you can do with the composition as it stands here is to boost the contrast levels to give more dynamic range to the light & shadow areas to make them stand out more. Also giving a bit of a saturation boast (not too much for you don't want it to look oversaturated) would help give the color tones a more richer and deeper hue.

It'a a Chevy! (Inspired by NikonJeb's Procrastination, Jan 2007, Red Ribbon Photo)
by BrownEyes

Comment:
Nice capture of this derelict and run down truck. Focus is nice and crisp. I think that this is a really good emulation off of the original. The color tones are good but I think a little more boast to the saturation will add some richness to the color hues. Also the contrast is a littttllllle flat. Upping the contrast levels just a tad will make the difference between light and dark areas visually pop more. Good job though.

Emotional Outlet redux
by snaffles

Comment:
A nicely done attempt in emulation of the original. While a good attempt there are several things that you can do to increase the visual impact of this photo. I don't know the capabilities of your camera but if you can adjust the White Balance in the camera I would suggest doing so. It might help to decrease or eliminate the dull yellowish cast that is in this photo. If that does not help you might want to consider a light source that uses a bulb that casts natural sunlight (cooler blue) tones to get rid of the yellowish cast. Another possible suggestion is to utilize the Automatic Color Balance tool in Paintshop/Photoshop to adjust the color "temperature" away from the Orange incandescent bulbs to a cooler blue sunlight tones. Plus there is a remove color cast checkbox in that selection. Lastly the focus is nice and sharp on the outlet showing us many wonderful details but it utterly lacks focus on the 'tear' which is vital to visual image you want your audience to see & feel. Focusing specifically on the waterdrop before you press the shutter should increase the clarity of the tear. If you notice the stats on Scalvert's original, he used an aperture of f16 and a shutter speed of 1/100. Since this is most likely a macro you might also want to consider the use of a smaller aperture (such as 8 or higher) and a slower shutter speed to increase the level of details and the DOF such that the foreground and background of the overall image is in sharp focus.

A Tasty Treat from Wacky Foods - by mrorange002
by vtruan

Comment:
Um, O.K. as much as I find the thought of a cricket/grasshopper very unappetizing I do appreciate all the fine details and the technicals of this composition. The composition of element is sound and it is framed good, but the lighting needs to be toned down quite a bit for many areas are overexposed washing out details and the richness of color tones. The colors of the red lips, the grasshopper/cricket, and most especially in the chopsticks are very washed out. The overexposure is most evident in loss of detail in the chopsticks - they appear blown out and portions almost disappear against the white backdrop. The skin around the lips is also overexposed with no skin tones visible at all. It almost looks like the skin is the same color as the white background. The overexposure washes away any fine details that might be seen in the 'texture' of the lips. As it stands in the composition here there is very little texture to showcase the lips because they look very flat. Toning down the amount of light in your photo by either adjusting the aperture & shutter speed for correct exposure or, if used, scaling back on Brightness/Contrast levels in PS would bring back the richness in color tones and the details/textures of the objects seen within.

5th day of christmas ----- (Larus- 12 days of christmas)
by Rino63

Comment:
This is a good attempt at emulating the original. You have all the major elements present in your composition. While a good shot there are several areas that need attention for this to catapult into the exceptional category. The tones and contrasts of this composition appears a bit flat. There is a dull pinkish cast to the hands. The first thing I would recommend is to try another light source to illuminate your subject more strongly. Not only would it illuminate the differences between the light and dark areas of the skin more but it would put a nice sheen on those rings making them really shine. In addition to adding another spotlight, you might need to play around with the Brightness/Contrast levels - specifically to increase the contrast which is what Larus said he did in the original. He also mentioned he decreased the saturation which most likely decreased or eliminated most of any pinkish tones present. You might even have to do some dodging & burning to further increase the contrasts of light and dark areas on the main subject to really make it pop off the page.