This was a very beautiful image. An elegant wilted rose in the darkness, and beautifully composed too. I gave it a 10 and I have no idea how it landed so much down in the rankings...
This image is strongly reminiscent of Van Gogh's "Vase With Dead Leaves" //www.vangoghgallery.com/catalog/Painting/668/Vase-with-Dead-Leaves.html and from a technical standpoint is artistically and technically perfect. Superlatives fail to adequately describe the powerful impression made by this image. Well done.
Long forgotten Rose........I like the idea, the composition here is very good. I feel the rose is a touch dark. I understand that you want the overall image dark, but at least on my monitor, having it a little (just a little) lighter would have made it and its details stand out just a bit more, and would have made it better........
I like the border you have applied, simple and elegant, as a rose should be, and provides a contrast to the subject that works well