Purple Cross
by JacquiD

Comment by gg3rd:
The flower is badly damaged.

Another Great Oak in the Making
by JacquiD

Comment by talj:
Greetings from the Critique Club:

Hi Jacqui,

Firstly this obviously meets the challenge title, so were are off to a good start :o)

Composition:

I like how close you have got to the acorn but feel the background has too much going on in it. If possible I would have tried to move the leaf in the bottom left side of the frame as this for me is the main distraction.

The shot may also have worked better as a portrait with the the leaves in the top left hand corner and the acorn coming down into the middle/lower third of the picture if you see what I mean.

Technicals:

I agree with the comment below, the lighting is a little flat. A brighter day with a bit more natural light on the subject would have really helped this but maybe further adjustments of Levels/contrast would also help to lift the colours.

I am a little confused about your reason for using Gaussian Blur? I am not sure if maybe by using this you have given the overall image a slight soft feel. Your aperture was 5.6 so you should have quite a shallow depth of field, maybe an adjustment to the point of focus may have helped.

My Personal Thought:

Some better natural light and a little work on composition and this may have scored better.

If you've got any questions about this critique, please feel free to contact me via the PM system.

- Natalya :o)

Purple Cross
by JacquiD

Comment by ccotters:
Interesting take on a flower

Purple Cross
by JacquiD

Comment by xXxscarletxXx:
Good flower shot

By Degrees
by JacquiD

Comment by ambaker:
Critique Club Review:

Meets the challenge. Focus and depth of field are good. The triangle on the left distracts a bit. Perhaps because it is not in line with the other lines in the picture.

The pencil lines lead the eye, but come together off the image, thus leading the eye out of the picture.

The big problem for me, is there is no real center of interst. The eye just kind of wanders around not knowing what you wanted to really show. A more dramatic lighting might have helped. I'd have to agree this angle made things look a bit flat.

Each with its own limitations
by JacquiD

Comment by willhale:
Wonderful idea.

Each with its own limitations
by JacquiD

Comment by svstoltz:
They look like friends.

Each with its own limitations
by JacquiD

Comment by szalona:
i started psychotically cleaning my screen, but no, there is dust or something distracting in your photo, foreground... otherwise nice, a bit too white for candlelight

Each with its own limitations
by JacquiD

Comment by vertigoreality:
blurry and grainy.

Each with its own limitations
by JacquiD

Comment by Shrink:
Would prefer some color