Devotion
by patio127

Comment:
First, thing you did right that is usually an error made when shooting our long nosed friends - got the nose in focus as well as (well, pretty damn close) the eyes.

Technical things you can correct for next time:

- Great expression on the dog, give the composition some room to breathe. Compose so the dog is looking into the frame and leave some space on the other side of his head. Also because we (westerners) are slaves to our subconscious, you'll find a photo tends to resonate better when composed so that the eyes follow the same motion as they do when reading a book. Left to right, top to bottom. Dog on the left, eyes at top, nose at bottom, dead air on the right.

- Lighting. It's an investment, and a necessary one if you do not want to be completely reliant on natural light. Assuming you don't want to spend money on a flash or two (read strobist.com), then your next best option is to wait for daylight and shoot your friend next to a window. The natural light coming at him from the side will do a great job of providing both detail and contour and give your photo a nice 3D look. Assuming an accommodating pooch, you can rotate him around and see what 'pose' works best with the light at hand. This will also solve your whitebalance issue pretty much on its own, or at least remove the yellow cast introduced by indoor lights.

I am guessing some of the very low votes are 'snapshot' votes, as even the most facist of voters would have to consider this a portrait and not dnmc. That's probably entirely due to the lighting so easy enough to work around next time.

Good looking dog, and you did get the expression you were after so good job on that.

Not another bloody party!
by Judi

Comment:
Clicking through thumbs the first day, I thought this guy was going to be a glass full of trouble! Not surprised at all to see it ribbon, good one.

Fight Club (tribute to Image# 751903)
by senor_kasper

Comment:
Insanely good shot.

Never Too Late For Sunrise
by Stagolee

Comment:
Good move not referencing the original shot during voting (in the title), definitely worked to your advantage.

Dawn
by roz

Comment:
Roz, this is excellent.

Dawn
by roz

Comment:
Roz, this is excellent.

Bubbles
by lovethelight

Comment:
Nice shot, grats! Doubly so for being the only ribbon winner to actually meet the challenge.

...is some mistletoe
by molinski4611

Comment:
Great shot!

The Amazing Spider-Man
by Ringostarr

Comment:
Your use of existing artwork has deceived me into thinking you are half human half spiderman.

Streamlined
by aKiwi

Comment:
Didn't vote, but at a glance I could see why some people would not have considered this being backlit (their 'glance' not mine), given the large, specular highlight on the front of the ball which pretty much says "guess where the light source was". Could be why you got such an unusual number of 2's.