*critique club*
Composition
The low angle works well to create some interest, but the main focus (lego brick) is very centred, taking up all the frame. Try experimenting with more negative space, and different compositions, maybe in landscape rather than portrait. If you're not familiar with the rule-of-thirds, it would be well worth reading up on.
Technical stuff (exposure, dof, lighting etcâ€Â¦)
The exposure is slightly washed-out on my monitor, which has made the colours more dull. It could have been darkened either in-camera with exposure compensation (of -0.3/0.6 I'd guess) of by adjusting Levels when editing. While lighting is ok, it may be worth experimenting with different lighting conditions, eg low evening light, to bring out the atmosphere conjured up by the title.
The main problem here, and the reason you didn't place higher, is the missed focus / very shallow depth of field. Make sure that when you use macro mode you do not go any closer than your manual focus range - in your case thats 5cm. Get any closer and your photos will be out of focus. If you weren't this close, it may just be blurred because of camera-shake. With a shutter speed of 1/25s its pretty hard to keep a photo sharp - to increase the shutterspeed you'll need more light or you could use a tripod (minitripod/beanbag/beaniebaby in this case) to avoid camera shake.
Post-processing
n/a except you could have darkened it & increased contrast slightly if you have the software. These should also help to bring out the colour - if not, try increasing the saturation with hue/saturation sliders.
Message/atmosphere portrayed
Despite some of the technical failings, it does succeed in portraying a feeling of "left behind" - lost youth etc.
Meeting the challenge
No problems here, good idea
My personal opinion
There are clearly some technical issues, mainly the lack of focus that have meant it hasnt placed as well as it might. I definitely feel there's potential though - please don't be put off by the first result and continue entering contests.
Hope you find this helpful, feel free to PM me if you have any questions
Kirsty :)
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