Taurus the Bull
by PDavis

Comment:
Personally I love bulls and am also a taurean so I am a bit biased on this one.
I pulled it into photoshop and played with some cropping.
I preferred him with the right side cropped out (taking away the leg).
I can see though that the leg also gives him some "support".
Therefore as a "Picture of a bull" I think the leg is better in but as a "SYMBOL of Taurus" I think the head is strong enough to stand on it's own.
I know there is absolutely nothing you could do about it (unless it's a very tame bull) but I think the bits of grass etc - make him appear a bit of a pussy-cat - and if the grass could have been brushed off then he would appear more menacing - but I am certainly not going to reduce my score for that!
David

Pisces Eatery
by BAMartin

Comment:
Good fish -
I found the picture very cluttered though and feel some of the problems could have been solved with judicous cropping and slight rotation.
There are a couple of ways of "treating this picture - Severely cropping it leaving just the fish and 2 of the chinese characters - or leaving it in its environment and careful cropping and a little rotation.
I find my eye is drawn to the tops of the windows. On the left the top of the frame has cut right into the window - on the right the frame is about six inches above the top of the window. Simply rotating the picture to get rid of that leaves the fish at an angle therefore that would be just as bad - but cropping to just below the window tops - and rotating just one or 2 degrees evens it out a lot.

Because the fish does appear dead straight to the bottom of the frame, I think the only way to fix this properly would have been to move your position slightly to the right (not always possible of course).
On the whole I think a simple crop - half-way across (just below the central window bars may have suited best.
David

Ripples in Aries
by mrblobby

Comment:
Interesting picture -
I feel that it would have been better had you been able to get over the top of the symbol. Depth of field would then have been retained over the whole image.
Losing bepth of fiels at the top and bottom but not at the sides has thrown the picture out of balance. I find the two catchlights at the bottom of the picture disruptive. With the silver item in the centre, you would expect the brightest catchlights to be there. I tried the picture in Photoshop and savagely cropped out everything but the symbol and one ring.
I believe it looked better -
David

Strange Sign in a Strange World
by geschlechtmann27

Comment:
I think the picture has suffered a lot in having its resolution cut so dramatically (obviously not your fault). I have also open the picture up in Photoshop to see what that was in the top of the frame and the top right corner. Looking at it carefully it seems that it is the edge of a table possibly (may be wrong) but I think it should have been cropped out anyway. There is also a lot of light fall-off from front to back. It would have been better if you had been able to get higher and over the rings.
I am sure some will wonder if it fits the category (cultures who do not use the standard western zodiac signs) but I am happy that it does. I think it is also an original picture. The idea was certainly worth a try. But I think it need a little more thought and some cropping would have made a huge difference.
David

Year of the Dragon
by drgsoell

Comment:
Should this have been here or in "painted with light". Beautifully lit.
My one concern in the whole picture is the flame. It appears to be coming from the wrong place. I edited it out in photoshop and the dragon was strong enough to stand on its own merit. perhaps if the flame had been further away from the head?
Still excellent and meanacing.
David

Year of the Rabbit
by MWitt

Comment:
Really good interpretation - Like it very much - it says so much but shows so little and the puzzle of how it got round the tree is great.
I have concerns relating to exposure and whether it may have been a good idea to have held a reflector to one side, but this is one of those instances where the picture itself - takes precedance over the technical aspects.
Truly wonderful
David

Pretty Horse
by HRoxas

Comment:
Really nice calendar shot. The only thing is that angles (angled horizons) tend to create a sense of excitment, It is a psychological phenomena) rather like the old Batman style of filming.
I think that is what has gone wrong in the picture.
I know the horse does not look right when the picture is rotated to level the background, I tried in photoshop - so this is one of those times when you need to have in your minds ete when taking the shot - "what is happening outside the main subject".
It's a shame because it is beautifully exposed. It needed a walk-around to try and find a different angle. it's the classic case of taking a beautiful landscape and then on looking at the picture finding a huge litter bin right in the foregound!
Getting the exposure of the horse as good as that in snow is an achievement in itself.
David

"Moses" Starring in: Year of the Dog
by casualguy

Comment:
Very beautiful dog and you have retained the texture of the hair perfectly. Eyes have a beautiful catchlight, subtle and not overpowering. The collar really does look like stainless steel.
I am sure you have had comments on the background!
What a shame. Especially when the dog looks like he is happy to pose (my dog loves the camera and will sit for ages, move head left - hold - right hold - head up - hold etc.)
If this were my picture I would definatly edit the background and get it printed.
David

Year of the "Three Little Pigs"
by bjallen

Comment:
Not what I was expecting - Nice fun picture. From a critical point of view I think they are too central and that panning would have blurred the background and let the background given the impression of speed and kept more focus on the pigs "HOWEVER" This is clearly a grabbed shot and you don't get the opportunity to give it another go so I think other things are needed to LIFT the picture, ones which can be done in software and still remain within the rules of the challenge.
I fiddled with it in photoshop, just to try and give it a "lift".
First thing was a change to black and white and up the contrast - this enhanced the differences in the pigs colours/markings.
secondly, as there are 3 parralel fence rails which the pigs are running parralel with next to a line of snow - I used this to lead the eye through the photo from right to left.
3:- Crop the top of the picture right to the top of the top of the top right hand side of the fence rail (that was a mouthful.
4:. That has now left a lot of foreground and the line of snow goes in the wrong direction. So crop the bottom almost up to the bottom of the left pigs foot.
---
This leaves a long thin picture but as all the lines are parralel I think it works.
---
All the elements of a good picture of there, I think they just need finding within the picture and isolating.
David

Little Red Rooster
by Seanachai

Comment:
Beautiful eye -, and beautiful retention of colour. It is a shame that the white feathers just to the right and above the eye have over-exposed and a slight circle of under-exposire around the outside. In the abscence of a proper diffused light - tissue paper can sometimes fix a problem like this but as you have clearly got very close, even this may not have worked. Therefore I think you have made the best of a difficult situation.
David