Double Photo Critique: Flowers – Critiques

We asked you to submit the pictures of flowers you wanted us to critique, and 3 brave souls submitted us their work.

In no particular order, please find their picture, with the critique below it.
Steve Rice (aka Steve in Japan)

 

I love the light in this picture. It brings us to the vase and the main subject that is the main pink flower (sorry don’t know the name). The diagonals of the table and window help frame the subject. I have a minor issue with the line on the wall as it is slightly tilted. My biggest issue however is with a lot of things touching the border and being cropped. I tried to remove the branches touching but was not really pleased with the result. A strong decentered vignette might have helped. I think the contrast and tone chosen go well with the subject.

Remus

Remus gave this information while submitting: “Photo taken with an old film camera, Praktica MTL 5 and with a film expired in 2003.” At this point I have to assume that the very soft focus was part of the work. I like the vibrant red of this rose and its position. I have some minor issues with some of the leaves, more especially the one on the left and the 3rd from the left that is tilted and break the pattern. I wonder if the part of the glass/vase adds anything here. My main issue is with the background pattern that is very distracting to me. I however still appreciate the mood created by this picture.

Autopict

I may be ignorant but I’m not sure I’ve seen a lot of pictures of flowers like this before. I really like the bright yellow opposed to the darker areas and the sun shining through and creating a nice bokeh.  The issue with this angle is that the stems have a very important part in the picture and lets be honest, stems are not the most beautiful part of a flower. Maybe a slight move to the right at capture time would have given more petals and less stems. Eyes are caught by light and I believe that the small strip of light at the base of the first flower (in the center) is distracting. Also, reading from left to right, I believe I would have flipped horizontally. Below is my edit, let me know what you think.

Thanks a lot to Autopict, Remus and Steve. I really appreciate your trust. I checked what picture I would have submitted and I think I would have gone with the one below as it is is one of my most recent and I find the flower very interesting.

Soaptree Yucca at White Sands

Feel free to tell us what you think of this critique by mail or in the comments. If you are interested in submitting the next theme is landscapes.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #16

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are  Xerraire for Best of 48 (18 Nov – 24 Nov) and Ruimnm for Theme 48 : Begins with “I” or “J”. Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”. Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 48 (18 Nov – 24 Nov): I picked Droddel for a clear cold capture, Mittened Hands because I love the message and the title, Remus for a very controlled black and white with a nice play on the shadows and Shaker for a gorgeous light and sky.

• For Theme 48 – Begins with “I” or “J”: I loved Ruimnm and his jars and “Incas” from Larans (that was by the way a deserved spotlight on Aminus) and am glad they won. For this challenge I had only one pick and did hesitate a long time between Frances and her inquisitive giraffe and Locozoom. I ended up picking Locozoom for his great picture. It was his first submission and I would like to see more.

My pick of the week is Xerraire for her very intimate picture of a gorilla. I love how he seems lost in his thoughts and intelligent. It is in my opinion a great portrait.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #12

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Gumnut for Best of 44 (21 Oct – 27 Oct) and Deja for Theme 44 : Subjects of Phobias. Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 44 (21 Oct – 27 Oct): I loved the majesty of Gumnut’s peacock and the stunning lights of Ben and Thorgun. I picked Harmonie for her beautiful feeling of autumn.

• For Theme 44 – Subjects of Phobias: I’d like to start by saying that I’m pretty scared about the pictures submitted for this, as it basically means that most of you were inches from these spiders and snakes and cockroach for instance. I really liked Monica as her spider seems to be dancing and Ben for a stinging shot but I picked in the end Larans that showed the Eiffel tower and reached me what acrophobia is in the same picture

My pick of the week is Remus for Best of 44 (21 Oct – 27 Oct). Not only is it a beautiful light painting shot but it’s a shot that celebrate Remus 9 years of photoblogging. 9 years is a really impressive number. Congratulations and many more to you Remus!

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #10

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Ruimnm for Best of 42 (07 Oct – 13 Oct) and Xerraire for Theme 42 : Skylines. Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 42 (07 Oct – 13 Oct) : I real liked Remus‘ submission here as I found it very original and telling. I’m glad it’s among the winners. I picked Klaus Neuner for the beautiful fresh look and Rue Du Lavoir.
  

• For Theme 42 – Skylines : I picked Monica for once again great colors as she is used to to, Rue du Lavoir for a very strong picture that illustrates loneliness and Shaker for the strong lines and colors.

My pick of the week is Rue Du Lavoir for is beautiful dragonfly for Best of 42. Love the details and the vibrance of the colors.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #9

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Spectrum for Best of 41 (30 Sep – 06 Oct), Boxman for Theme 41 : Straight lines, Deja for Technique 20 : Macro of metal and Larans is the big winner for the Monthly Project 09 : Photo Hunt . Congratulations to them!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 41 (30 Sep – 06 Oct) : I picked Orchard for a very joyful portrait and Xerraire for a beautiful silhouette with great colors.
  

• For Theme 41 – Straight lines : I picked Deja, Remus for the vibrant red and beautiful light and Shaker for the dynamic composition and a great title.

• For Technique 20 – Macro of metal: I picked Ellebelle for the repetition and the great metallic feel, Love2b because I’m a sucker for rust and textures and Wanderungen for a picture full of symbolism.

• For Monthly Project 09 – Photo Hunt: This project was slightly different from others and I was able to pick freely one picture as my favorite in each of the 5 categories. I picked Twiggy for the apple category for a tasty shot full of textures, Larans for bridge for a stunning light and great composition, Love2b for red for a great light and a vibrant red, Shaker for street for a nifty effect and Day One for “any” for a picture with a lot of story behind.

My pick of the week is Deja for Theme 41 – Straight lines. I love the pattern and the abstract feeling of that shot.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #5

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Mittened Hands  for Best of 37 (02 Sep – 08 Sep), Harmonie for Theme 37 : Candles and Ruimnm for Technique 18 : B&W High Key.

Celine  and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 37 (02 Sep – 08 Sep) : 10 votes were not too much this week as I loved a lot of submissions. Mittened Hands was in my preferred due to its great memories of childhood. I also liked Shaker very much  for giving us some last thoughts of summer. I picked Different Sensations for all his blue, Joel Schilling to bringing me back to the majesty of Bryce Canyon National Park and Remus for its festive feeling.
  

• For Theme 37 – Candles : I felt this subject very intimate. I picked up Deja for being different and original, Shaker for a very moving focus, Steve Rice for showing us a bit of culture from down there and Tapio for an heavenly flare.

• For Technique 18 : B&W High Key : Another challenge where it was very difficult to pick favorites. I picked Day One for her beautiful flower, Deja  for a very cute picture that makes me smile and Different Sensations for a very creepy picture that makes me cringe but is very good and on point.

My pick of the week among the winners was the submission for Best of 37 (02 Sep – 08 Sep) by Different Sensations. This picture is in fact the work of Giacomo, Walter’s son.  Giacomo is 3 years old. I really loved the peacefulness and zen of this picture.

Picture by Walter’s son, Giacomo, 3 years old

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #4

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are  Frances for Best of 36 (26 Aug – 01 Sep), Wanderungen for Theme 36 : People Working and Ellebelle for Monthly Project 08 : Summer.

Celine  and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 36 : Love the diversity in the winners this week with a lot of people trying different new things. I picked Leovi for another take on his long project, Remus for his powerful shot that brought back memories, Twiggy for her tender stolen portrait and Shaker for his great exotic architectural shot.
  

• For Theme 36 – People Working : This was a tough challenge but you came through. I picked Different Sensations for capturing what loneliness on the job look like, Larans for a very true view of the life in an garage, Twiggy for an exotic cooking lesson full of textures and Ruimnm for another look on the security job.

• For Monthly Project 08 – Summer : The days are getting colder but we were still able to appreciate your view of summer. I picked Larans and Thorgun for their view of the big North. Looks like they had  a lot of fun under the sun. There is a feel of coldness with gorgeous like on both. I picked Twiggy for her work in depth on the summer flowers.

My pick of the week among the winners was the submission for Best of 36 by Wanderungen. I couldn’t leave this look and had the feeling to be very close to this cow with a lot of personality.

Photoblog Challenges : Results #3

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Remus for Best of 35 (19 Aug – 25 Aug), Deja for Theme 35 : One Flower and Xerraire for Technique 17 : Sun Rays.

Celine  and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 35 : Decisions were tough this week. I picked Hapzydeco for the fresh look on these cute birds, Klaus Neuner for the very expressive look of his dog and Leovi for his crystal clear fresh shot. 
  

• For Theme 35 – One Flower : I really liked the poetic touch from the ladybug in Ben’s shot. I picked Buntscheck for the very dramatic processing, PhotoLeoGrapher for a sharp view of an orchid and Rye Du Lavoir for a delicate shot once more.

• For Technique 17 – Sun Rays : The submissions were amazing an it took me the 2 weeks to decide who to vote for. You should really check this challenge out! I picked Monica and Pictografio as their sun rays were the major actor in their dramatic shots.

My pick of the week among the winners was the submission for Technique by Twiggy. It’s always a pleasure to see Twiggy‘s submissions as she is very creative and has a great eye.

Photoblog Challenges : Results #2

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Ruimnm for Best of 34 (12 Aug – 18 Aug) and Red Rock Photography for Theme 34 : Sunny.

Celine  and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 34 : There were a lot of great submissions this week. I’m glad that Mittened Hands is among the winners for his first submission. I really liked the fan’s passion and happiness. Congratulations and welcome! I picked Gumnut for the great layers of warm light, Remus for a flawless nostalgic shot, Xerraire for her amazing shot of a flying heron and Weib for a beautiful black and white with a funny title.

• For Theme 34 – Sunny : I really liked the processing from Twiggy. With various choices from everyone I only had one pick. I picked Vaido for the great feeling of holidays in these last days of summer.

My pick of the week among the winners was the tape from Remus. It reminded me of so much good memories. Loved the mechanical aspect of these.

Photoblog Challenges : Results #1

This week on photoblogchallenges,  congratulations are in order for Treur, Fototopia and Rue Du Lavoir winners for Best of 33 (05 Aug – 11 Aug), Theme 33 : Begins with “F” and Technique 16 : Macro of insects.

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 33 : I particularly liked the submission from Treur for the great silhouette and Tapio for the adventures of his ladybug. I picked Deja for his intriguing macro, Leovi for a sharp fresh abstract,  Light Impressions for a very detailed flamingo with amazing colors and Remus for a puzzling work in Black and White.

• For Theme 33 – Begins with “F”:  Treur and Joel Schilling had great frog renditions with amazing details and I’m glad they were picked. I picked the flower from PhotoLeoGrapher for the great use of the depth of field and a very fresh green. My second choice was Red Rock Photography with a splendid field.

• For Technique 16 – Macro of insects : I’m really amazed by the level of details from Rue Du Lavoir and pretty envious. This challenge was the first for Lena Ericsson and her delicate butterfly is among the winners. Welcome to Photoblogchallenges Lena! I picked Thorgun and her bumblebee for the details (look at the pollen!)  and Twiggy for making a creepy crawler look beautiful!

My pick of the week, among all the winners would have to be Rue Du Lavoir for is macro of insect. Here it is.