Great Blue Heron in flight
by MacDonald

Comment by electina:
Great motion panning!

mallard-landing
by MacDonald

Comment by Gunnsi:
I must have fallen! :-)
Nice capture!

Eyeless
by MacDonald

Comment by Tej:
Greetings from the Critique Club!

Technical: Well executed and seems to be well excposed.

Aesthetic: Nice abstract but might not be of eveyones taste. I like it though.

Challenge: Fits the challenge.

Conclusion: Somehow abstracts dont do that well on DPC, but closer to 6 score is good for such submissions. I really like the details (grains) on your submission. Did you intentionally blurred the left corner or is it DOF? I guess deeper DOF might have added some extra punch. Anyway, your idea is very original and creative. Looking forward to your future submissions.

I'm by no means expert in area of photography. My comments are purely based on my limited understanding of technology and art behind digital photography. Apart from doing detailed evaluation of your submission, my intent is to learn different styles of photography by critically evaluating selective submissions. If you've got any questions about this critique, please feel free to contact me via email or PM.

Wish you a great day!
-Tej

How did I get here?
by MacDonald

Comment by macrothing:
'Technically' (again, am no 'expert'), the toning works well, composition is quite good, but perhaps a little sharper angle/perspective (difficult with candids) may have added a little extra to this. A more refined crop likely also have helped. edit:removed TN and condensed

Message edited by author 2006-04-20 06:09:36.

Eerie Reflection
by MacDonald

Comment by macrothing:
I gave this a 5. Thought it was a fairly good capture of a difficult shot to get. To be honest, as with some of the other shots, I didn't pay as much attention to the title (as I likely should have), hence didn't 'notice' the 'eerie reflection'. Does look a little like a 'startled' Mona Lisa.

Eyeless
by MacDonald

Comment by macrothing:
I gave this a 6. Thought it was an interesting abstract and the texture captured quite well. Difficult, but the texture definition even sharper, would have made this better (for this Challenge) in my opinion. After reading your comments, seems a good eye to spot this - I still can't quite work out 'which way is up'/the context etc.

How did I get here?
by MacDonald

Comment by MacDonald:
Homelessness or poverty is not a reason to be unkempt (where I live) since there is access to a shelter where you can shower, wash your clothes and they let you use their mailing address/phone number â€Â¦ Very decent clothes are donated to these shelters/agencies and given out free of charge - some chronic homeless people who suffer from psychiatric disorders choose not to avail themselves of these community resourcesâ€Â¦some choose not to stay overnight in the shelters for a variety of reasonsâ€Â¦not the least of which is that it is a very moderate climate. The title - how did I get here - is an acknowledgement that many people are one to two paychecks away from being homeless – and the numbers are growing - now that’s scary! The remark, homeless people are easy prey, is one I don’t understand. If what was meant was that the homeless are an easy subject to capture, then how does this compare to subjects such as the elderly, children, flowers and pets? How many homeless do we see on DP compared to these subjects (and many others)? On the other hand, if what was meant was that I was somehow taking advantage of this particular homeless person then I ask: if one takes a candid picture of an elderly person without their permission, is the photographer preying on them as well? My mother, who hated to be photographed, unless her hair was perfect, her clothes just so, makeup on, would have been horribly upset if someone took her photo without her permission, more so if that person was a stranger. I told the man in my challenge submission that I took his photo. I asked him if that was okâ€Â¦ he said sure, that he had been in documentaries and on the front page of the local newspaper. This is a digital contest with no rewards other than a virtual ribbon and a good critique of your photo – hardly an inducement to take advantage of anyone. I appreciate all comments but those that relate to photography and how I can improve my skills I check as helpful. Sincerely, Mac.

How did I get here?
by MacDonald

Comment by Cam:
Man, sharp jacket, nice trim.
Thats one sharp bum.

Cool shot.

Eerie Reflection
by MacDonald

Comment by wheeledd:
I really like this--I'm one of the people who gave it an 8. I love the texture of the water and the reflection of the fish in the water. Both the fish and the water could have been sharper, but (unlike a lot of voters) I am more concerned with the feelings than the technical details.

What bothers me is the position of the fish. It is on the left in the image and it is jumping to the left--out of the frame. I'd be happier if there were more space to the left in the image for the fish to jump into.

--DanW

Eerie Reflection
by MacDonald

Comment by DrAchoo:
OK, a few things that catch my eye.

1) The composition is good. Vertical crop accentuates the jump. Rule of thirds is used well.

2) The color of the water is bad. Not that you could do much, but that shade brown for water is a turn off.

3) If you could have done it over, I would have suggested an even higher shutter speed to absolutely freeze the water splash.

4) All that being said, I appreciated the serendipity of capturing this shot. It does deserve some credit for that, but voters don't know how easy or hard a shot is and thus tend to not give you a bonus for it.