Watching the Parade with Prideby
Blue MoonComment by kaiser_chief: Posting a comment as it was asked for in the Forums......I didn't vote in the FS, but here is a honest assessment of the photo.
The photo lacks a wow! factor, an overall appeal that makes it stand out from the rest, and therefore attracts a lot of mid range votes.......
The bubbles do nothing for the photo. Some people mistook them for Lens flare, others for I don't know what. however, whatever they are, i feel they are just distracting elements that add nothing to the photo, and just add bright dots to attract the eye.
Much of the picture is brick wall, plain and boring. The brick doesn't have the character, or the context in the shot, to add anything to it.
The crop doesn't work. I would have cropped off the top, almost to the top of the flag. The square crop does not work with this photo. I also would have trimmed a little off the right. By doing this, you move the couple further away from the centre of the picture, and closer to the right line of thirds. therefore, this would have decentralised the couple, and helped balance the shot. I would not have cropped the left, as any change to that removes much of the flag, changing it from a primary element into a distraction......Removing a small area from the bottom (to about 1 brick below the bottom of the flag) also gets rid of brick while emphasising the main elements.
Lightening the Area on the top left (small area would remain) so that the shaddow is not as harsh would also have helped this image. I also would have adjusted the Highlights to darken them, this then gives the bricks a righter feel, and removes the overall too light/overexposed feel the photo currently has due to the harsh light.
Just my opinion, FWIW...............