Death Valley Dawn
by TommyMoe21

Comment by GeorgesBogaert:
Top 10. An 8 from me. The log's color is a little flat. A different processing to make it pop out would make it a price winning shot

Death Valley Dawn
by TommyMoe21

Comment by gipper11:
Very nice.

Spark Shooter
by TommyMoe21

Comment by sidpixel:
Hello from the Critique Club

An interesting image that meets the challenge

'Steel wool in a whisk on a chain', hmm, look like fun! I like that you have a dynamic moving subject although its not an obvious or strong diagonal the fact is he is holding the light source at an angle so it is more an implied diagonal. The individual light trails are very effective and appealing, they fill the space very well, I particularly like the way those that are hitting the ground have been recorded. There is obvious blow out of the highlights of the light source itself but obviously there is nothing you can do about this.

Your exposure is good with detail throughout. I'm intrigued and confused by your comments about the post processing, I don't know what you mean by 'stroked'?

An interesting and creative take on the challenge brief, well done, Sid

Spark Shooter
by TommyMoe21

Comment by clickodak:
Congrats on the top 10

Spark Shooter
by TommyMoe21

Comment by tylerichert:
I think this is the most creative entry because you're capturing a moving object, where majority of the entries have still objects.

Spark Shooter
by TommyMoe21

Comment by MichaelC:
well executed image of this genre

Spark Shooter
by TommyMoe21

Comment by clickodak:
absolutely wonderful. Give you 8

Spark Shooter
by TommyMoe21

Comment by Luciemac:
What is that.....a giant sparkler?

Soaring
by TommyMoe21

Comment by 3DsArcher:
This is one amazing photo

The Lady At Mirror Lake
by TommyMoe21

Comment by sidpixel:
*Hello from Sid and the Critique Club*

A pleasing landscape that is assumed to meet the challenge

A lovely location that has been enhanced by your thoughtful inclusion of your wife in the scene. Her inclusion gives us a good strong focal point and also gives us a sense of scale of the grandeur of the location. I like the skies a lot.

Your composition and exposure are generally good, the reflections are a welcome addition. Technically your settings are good, nice low ISO and I assume a good tripod for support. You have achieved a huge DOF through your choice of a small aperture though if this actually the smallest aperture I would generally avoid it in the interests of best image quality.

Like your commenter I am not keen on HDR treatment, the colours are a little too saturated for me, I prefer more subtlety and a more natural looking result though having said that your image is a lot better than many I have seen using this technique.

Thanks for your submission, Sid