Portrait of a Lonely Pug
by brianlh

Comment:
This dodge and burn thing is completely beyond me but I will say I like this one better than the original, which was entirely too light. You managed to add a lot of contrast without making it seem unnatural...something I still have to learn. Great job.

Deer
by airdance

Comment:
I like this one a lot. Deer are beautiful animals. If you have photoshop you might try a little Unsharp Mask to bring out the details in the fur or a minor curves adjustment to add contrast.

Wet Rose
by airdance

Comment:
I like the water drops. I think they add a lot to the shot. If you cropped closer to the rose, or darkened the background a bit I think it would bring out the petals even more. I'm a huge fan of filling the frame though and I realize not everyone is, so feel free to disregard. :-)

Diamond Doves
by airdance

Comment:
I agree a deeper DoF might have helped this shot. Also, cropping closer to the top of the bird's heads would have gotten rid of some of the blown out highlights. The bird in the foreground has nice detail in the feathers.

Peacock
by airdance

Comment:
The colors on the peacock are beautiful. The leaves in the foreground are a bit distracting, although I'm not sure there was much you could have done about that. I've chased a peacock around the St. Louis zoo on more than one occasion in an attempt to get a good shot. You might have tried to wait for him to come out in the open, but they aren't exactly cooperative creatures. You could also crop out some of the leaves and branches on the right side so the eye focuses more on the bird.

Blue Water
by marbo

Comment:
This is a great shot Mark! I think the blue is fantastic.

Male Northern Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium californicum)
by Dr.Confuser

Comment:
Even looking closely I can't see the grain. Am I missing something?
Fantastic shot by the way.

ISO400 (noise removed - 100%)
by David.C

Comment:
It's pretty amazing how much better this one looks with the noise removed. I haven't tried to separate the colors before reducing the noise, but I think I'm gonna give it a go. I'd like to see an example once you get better at controlling it.

ISO400 (crop)
by David.C

Comment:
Yeah, without a doubt you can see the noise in this shot. I agree with you. I'm not a fan of digital noise in most photos myself.

'Back At Ya'
by notbiscuit

Comment:
Great job Michelle! Congratulations on your highest score so far.
Nice shot. I couldn't get that stupid bear to stop pacing when I was there. lol