Seedhead
by lwiley212

Comment by atupdate:
Hello from the Critique Club.

I didn̢۪t vote on the Zen challenge so this is the first time for me to see your image. I like the colors of this photo, the blue is very pleasing and the browns and greens of the grass compliment the blue very well. It might have been possible with different post processing to bring out the color of the flower more but I̢۪m willing to bet that you would blow out some of the highlights in the grass and that would not be worth it. The texture of the grass is too powerful in this image to risk sacrificing. Overall this is a very nice image that I would be proud to have in my portfolio if I had taken it. From your score I would guess that many of the voters didn̢۪t see the Zen in this image and some of your comments indicate that. This was a tough topic to shoot and I think you put forth a very noble effort.

Tim

Dragon's Hoard
by lwiley212

Comment by PaulE:
Greetings from the Critique Club.

Hi Linda,

Your shot sure satisfies the challenge - that is a whole lot of gold there. Too much so, in fact, as no part of the composition stands out as the subject and it is difficult for the eye to pick the different objects where they overlap.

An environment such as this where you control every aspect of the composition is a painstaking art, especially when working with highly reflective objects such as these. In future consider cleaning and shining each object - the dust on the dragon takes away from the potential warmth and hue. Try to keep the compositions simple - the simpler it is the less that can go wrong.

I\'m not really sure what you did with the lighting. It\'s great to hear that you learnt a lot working on it. Keep at it - this is an area where you will never run out of things to learn and practice. The blowouts on the globe and lamp stand are a bit too harsh - perhaps if you diffused the light this would have been better. OPr maybe you were aiming for that effect.

I hope my comments help and Good Luck in future Challenges!

Cheers
Paul

Seedhead
by lwiley212

Comment by sherpet:
Composition good, and I like the subject matter as well...

Seedhead
by lwiley212

Comment by pcody:
First impression. Good exposure, focused but maybe to centered. The colors are happy but mellow.
Additional: I think there are some good lines interacting with the flower in the upper right. The ones on the left are distracting. So maybe a different composition. Take out the grass on the left side and in front of the flower, move the flower down to the lower left and show more of the grasses above the flower and in the right side. I really like the fan shape of that grass on the right.

Seedhead
by lwiley212

Comment by talj:
IMHO this is too 'busy' and doesn't say Zen to me

Seedhead
by lwiley212

Comment by Karalew:
Very nice photo, I think the colors need to be brought out a little more

Dragon's Hoard
by lwiley212

Comment by geekssweet:
Like the dragon, but I lose him against the busyness of background a bit.

Dragon's Hoard
by lwiley212

Comment by NstiG8tr:
Meets Challenge:2
Aesthetics:1
Technical: 1
Wow: 0
Originality:1
Total Score: 5

Dragon's Hoard
by lwiley212

Comment by jah_luv:
Great Job!

Parallel Tens on Edge
by lwiley212

Comment by Phil:
Good eye.