Alpha Male
by babylon

Comment:
I like how the light shining done on the chimp seems to illuminate and make the top half of him glow. It is that illuminating light that seperates his shape from the overall black background. I think the composition suffers from being a tad too dark because the chimp is surrounded in a sea of darkness. Negative space can be good for a composition but it doesn't seem to add anything to this one. The bottom half of the chimp all but disappears in the black background and his eyes are lost in deep shadow. Closer crop to make the male chimp the main focus of the image would greatly improve visual appeal. Giving us an up close & personal look at your subject tends to increase visual appeal. Also, playing with levels and/or brightness/contrast may yeild some more details of the chimp's face and maybe even make his eyes visible.

mmmmm.......
by toti

Comment:
Lighting and all the elements in this composition are great!!! Love the expression on the models face for it really conveys the title so well. I can actually hear her say "Mmmmmm" as I look upon this photo. You did a great job of establishing a connection to the viewer with the composition. She is not only drinking in a tasty concoction BUT she is also drinking in some rather juicy gossip from a friend on the phone! Wonderful work and great presentation of concept.

Parasol
by birkin

Comment:
All the different colors and designs on the umbrellas make for an interesting and very busy shot. In short, the variety of colors and designs is a strength and weakness. Too much of it and it makes the composition too busy for us to truly appreciate. Too little and you lose the impact of the multitude of the umbrellas. So how does one get a composition that is more friendly and interesting to the eye? One way is to focus on making just one umbrella the main one. Then have 5 complete or portions of umbrellas surrounding/framing the main one. I see that there are several umbrellas which have B&W strips as their design - that could be the main one while you looked for a pattern of repeating colors or designs for the other umbrellas that would center around it.

Banana Bird Nesting
by biggood53

Comment:
Love how those bold and vibrant yellow and blue colors of the bird visually 'pop' off from the dull colored surroundings. That is where the strength of this composition lies, that and the curve/sweep of the two leaves that seem to cradle this bird between them. I think the visual impact would be stronger if you did a tighter crop where just the bird and the sweep of the two leaves dominate the scene. Get closer to your subject because when you do, you give your viewer an up close & personal view of something that they might not be able to get a closer look at in his/her part of the world.

Blue Eyes, Henna Hands
by dsa157

Comment:
I like this capture of what looks to be a natural pose of the model. It seems to me that she glanced over to look at you just as you pressed the shutter. As such her eyes are turned to us and it is as if we are the ones caught looking. And indeed, the eyes are a lovely shade of blue. She is adorned with all sorts of interesting jewelry and decor. Lighting and skin tones on the subject are excellent. I do have one critique and that is don't be afraid to get even closer to your subject. Either a closer crop or a zoom in where the bottom half cuts off just below the silver bracelet would make a stronger visual impact. The reason? Her face, her eyes, the interesting jewelry on her wrist (expecially that beaded diamond patterned bracelet), and the Henna pattern on her hand would dominate the composition more.

XI
by bragur

Comment:
Oh ho-ho-ho! Love the visual impact of this and how well it plays into the current challenge title of (Free Study) XII. The mark on the ship shows XII just above the water line which matches the Free Study. Also the title of the piece is XI, which tells us what we don't see - we see from the Mark lines that the next one down from XII will be XI. I love how you are playing with the visual here and tying it to the challenge title. However, I think the composition needs a little improving to strengthen your presentation. First off, I love the hues of the blue of the water and the red of the ship. I really think you could make those two elements the main focus of your photo. Those colors could really make the photo visually 'pop' but as it is here they are lost in the composition. The red of the ship (and those white mark numbers) occupy only 20% of the composition. A tighter crop or even a square crop would make the water color and the ship the main stars of the composition. As an added bonus, calling more attention to the mark numbers will only strengthen the visual appeal of the image. Leaving in the weatherbeaten wood of the dock does not add visual appeal. Actually it detracts because it adds nothing to the composition overall & the worn color does not complement the bolder hues seen here. Even if you did not want to do that quite of a tight crop, cropping out a third on the left side will still leave a strong visual appeal. Plus, it would add just one other element of interest with the tires and the colorful orange chains.

An apple a day...
by Tom_Robbrecht

Comment:
A nice, crisp close-up still life. The apples are 'tastefully' (pardon the pun) presented because with the rich green apple hue and the waterdrops adorning them they do look very inviting. The visual gives us a papable 'taste' of the clean, crisp taste of these apples. I like the arrangement of the apples for you never see them as a whole. This choice of presentation makes us appreciation and enjoy the curves of these apples. Lighting and detail are wonderful. The square crop is a nice touch because it not only helps keep a tight focus on the main subjects BUT the square shape is a nice juxaposition to the curves and 'roundness' of the apples.

Guiding Reflection
by Beagleboy

Comment:
Love the colors in this photo. The colors of the sky are beautiful and serene. The lighthouse in the distance adds visual interest - I have to say that I have never before seen a lighthouse with a green light! It makes the image unusual and interesting to look upon. I also like the abstract shapes and curves of the rocks and the water cradled in the valley between the rocks. It adds visual appeal. I also like how the foreground reflection of the lighthouse in the water plays so well with the title of the piece. Very lovely work.

Doors of Light
by chefsam

Comment:
I like the perspective in this composition as the eye 'travel's through each door to the 'vanishing point' off in the horizon. I like the golden colors that we encounter after we step out from the darkened quarters of the first door. It is the promise of light that beacons us out of the dark. I like the textures of the stone that we see in the wall because that also adds visual interest. However, even with those strengths, the composition can and needs a presentation that adds a fresh look at an old idea. I look at the composition and see an avenue that you could have taken to add even more visual interest to the image. A crop that is vertical rectangle and not a horizontal rectangle would have 'mimiced' yet another door that the viewer has to 'pass through' before we see the very first one pictured here in the foreground.

Inviting Solitude
by LtHousLady

Comment:
Colors are bold and vibrant in this photo! The B&W stripes on the lighthouse really pop visually. Love the angle that you took this shot from. The low to the ground and including the grasses (sea oats?) in the composition really gives us a sense of height on this lighthouse. It springs up from the ground and really dominates the scene. My only critique, and a small one at that, is that the lighthouse seems to be slightly tilted to the right - rotation or changing angle would have made it stand at a full 90 degrees.