Thanks to everyone who took part in the November Plus critiques. We had more than 70 photos submitted this month, and Hudson and I were able to critique each one in our monthly video, shown above.
Waterbirds at Dusk, by Julie Foehrenbach
Julie’s photo was one of our favorite shots from this month’s submissions. The birds are perfectly posed and placed, and tack-sharp (along with the supports they’re perched on). The composition is geometrically perfect, and the delightful orange gradient creates excellent negative space. You captured a wonderful moment, Julie — bravo!
This senior portrait of a friend’s autistic daughter is extremely well-done, capturing both the woman and her horse in a warm, delicate and insightful pose. As is the case with many great portraits, Rhonda focused on the eyes of her primary subject, but the whole scene tells a wonderful story. When talking about this photo, Hudson and I felt that the photo’s slightly desaturated look might be a slight distraction, thinking that either toned black and white or full color might have had more impact, but that’s a small point, and it doesn’t detract at all from the power of this photograph.
Moab Milky Way, by Jeff Grossberg
Jeff’s composite of the Milky Way against a Moab backdrop is lovely. Captured with one of Hudson’s favorite new toys, the Move Shoot Move star tracker, the Milky Way is perfectly captured. Because the foreground landscape is bathed in moonlight, we knew that it was captured on a different night, but it doesn’t matter; it is a great shot, and one that should be printed.
Sunny City of London, by Stephen Cox
This photo of London, shot late in the afternoon with a long lens, has the feel of a painting. The light is magnificent, with the broad beam of sunlight spreading in from the left, the sliver of sunlight reflecting off the building not the right. The layers in this photo are just spectacular: the well-defined row of buildings in the foreground lead the eye all the way to the back row of buildings in the mist. This is another photo that uses negative space in a great way. Lovely capture, Stephen.
Pool of colour, by Derrick Jones
The lines of the pier bisect this beautiful sunset shot, with the perfectly placed man and his dog. The colors of the sky are iridescent and feel right, and are balanced nicely by the reflection of the clouds on the right. Hudson felt that the blue of the pier was a bit distracting, and could be desaturated slightly with a local adjustment, but even without that, it’s a great shot, Derrick.
Backyard Butterfly, by Kenneth Scheepers
Ken’s shot is well-nigh perfect, and there’s not much more to say about it than that. This is a photo with great composition, sharpness where it needs to be, and a soft background that helps set off the subject. This is a shot you just want to look at and admire. Nice job, Ken!
December critiques open December 8
The December critiques will open on Tuesday, December 8, and will run for 10 days. There will be no theme this month, and the usual rule applies: please submit only one photo to the gallery.
Photos can be uploaded via the Plus Critiques Submission page; you can also find the upload specifics on that page as well.
