Hi everyone... OK, lots of AFK stuff going on this week, despite having the glory of full access restored to my Internet connection. So here I am, giving a belated review of this week's work. Sincerest apologies for my delay... Without any further undue hesitation, here is my take. ----- ------- ----- "Willy Lott's Cottage" - Andrew Brooks I really like this image, Andrew, even before taking into account the back story. You've incorporated a lot of visually arresting elements: the detailed clouds, the water, the foliage, and (of course) the cottage. Exposure looks really good; you've captured a nice wide tonal range, and the depth of field works for this. Compositionally, I would have preferred to see less on the left, and more on the right, but that's just me being picky. Great job! ----- ------- ----- "discontinuity" - Trevor Cunningham Trevor, the abstract nature of this image has my curiosity piqued, but even without a positive identification of the subject, I can say that it is well composed and executed. the serpentine highlight running vertically through the image is effective in forming a boundary between two starkly contrasting regions; without it, there would be too much tension, too much contrast, and quite possibly too much physical pain in the eyes to make this a photo worth looking at for any significant amount of time. I'm sure if I read some of the recent messages in the list I'd know what this is, but I prefer to review with a certain acceptable level of ignorance. Deviating from the ambiguous subject matter, I will say that I find your use of the soft image edge rather appealing, and although it generally doesn't work to enhance an image, this case is an exception. Well done! ----- ------- ----- "High tide/wind" - Emily L. Ferguson Hi Emily! I can taste the salt water splashing in my face... as experiential images go, this one is right on target. You did well to select a shutter speed that would portray this event much like my own eyes do, fast enough to freeze motion, slow enough to create a blur which hints at the velocity of moving water as it impacts stationary land. Compositionally it works; even though the horizon appears to be just slightly off-kilter, it is not enough of a tilt to be bothersome, and actually may lend itself to the illusion of motion toward the shoreline, as well as creating a balance with the dune rising sharply on the left side of the frame. As an aside, I wonder what this would be like as a segment of a panoramic blown up to 20 inches on the short side... ;-) ----- ------- ----- (untitled) - D.L. Shipman The low contrast of this image, at first, led me to think briefly that it could have been a much better shot without the diffused effect. But on second inspection, I realized that the overall unsharpness gives a sort of mystique to the vehicle; by eliminating sharp details, the viewer is almost forced to generate the story behind the image. The choice of color over B/W also works here, although in most cases I'd opt for the other way around. The height of the camera's viewpoint also helps, as it provides a sense of massive size to the machine, but is not so low that the strip of water in the background is lost. That being said, Dave, I don't think this is your best work; something seems like it's missing, but I can't figure out what it is. ----- ------- ----- "Ok, people line up, blue, red, blue, red... " - Alan Zinn That's pretty serendipitous, Alan. The more I look at this, the more repetition I find. Obviously the shirts, hence the title. Then there's the strollers. The circular/elliptical "pukers" in the background. Even the people in the foreground are walking in step with each other (with the exception of the child, but then again, since when do kids conform?). On top of all of that repetition... it's drizzly, and things are reflected in the ground. This is wonderfully whimsical, and I'm tempted to comment on the linked photo(s) as well, but I'll hold off, since this is really about the one photo. Contrast may need a bit more range, but it's tough to do on a day like that. Other technical aspects look great, and your timing on this one was magnificent. HCB would be proud... ----- ------- ----- I thank all of you who participated, whether in submission or response, or both. This was a good collection this week. Let's keep up the good work! Yours, Darin Heinz Melbourne, Florida USA
