weekly Drodd's Photo52 for 2011 - Week 51, 52 and bonus: Light, Glass, Nature (post 1545)

Morning Dawn! I really do like your Blackpool photo. It is ever so fitting for the theme, and I love the lights/illuminations. They both draw you into the photo! I like the darkness aswell; it really sets it off! :)
 
onlyme said:
Morning Dawn! I really do like your Blackpool photo. It is ever so fitting for the theme, and I love the lights/illuminations. They both draw you into the photo! I like the darkness aswell; it really sets it off! :)
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Hiya Sanna,

Thanks for your comments which are much appreciated (y)

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
I like the Blackpool shot :). It is really stylised and I like the balance of the lights above with the lights below! Very good idea too!
 
dubcat said:
I like the Blackpool shot :). It is really stylised and I like the balance of the lights above with the lights below! Very good idea too!
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Hiya Dubcat,

Thanks a lot for the comments and kind words, all much appreciated. Getting the balance of the lights was quite tricky to achieve, so I'm glad you like this part of the image.

Looking forward to finding out Week 9's theme.

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Hi Dawn, I really like the Blackpool shot. It's strangely abstract (which fits in with this weeks theme) and I had to look for a while to work out what's happening.

I like all the colours and the strange psycheledic patterns. It could almost be some strange deep sea creature with it's own lights. Or the view from a faster-than-light space craft. And the car bottom right looks quite threatening...
 
PatrickO said:
Hi Dawn, I really like the Blackpool shot. It's strangely abstract (which fits in with this weeks theme) and I had to look for a while to work out what's happening.

I like all the colours and the strange psycheledic patterns. It could almost be some strange deep sea creature with it's own lights. Or the view from a faster-than-light space craft. And the car bottom right looks quite threatening...
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Hiya Patrick,

Thanks for your comments and anology of my photo. There is a lot to go at there and YES I can see what you mean by all your descriptions. I hadn't thought of the 'strange deep sea creature' .... after all it was Blackpool so anything is possible :LOL:

Love hearing your interpretation of my pics/images, they keep me entertained and inspired :D

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Hiya Dawn!

I quite like your Blackpool photo. What I like the best is the contrast between light and dark. I am amazed how even the cars have no detail, but are just silhouettes. Have you darkened the image with PP?

I like you idea for the second image and the colours you have selected - very creative. What I don't like is the combination of effects for the central part and the inner border. Maybe if you have left bust one of the inner borders... Just way too many different effects which I think splits the image.

Great job and can't wait to see what will you come up for the next theme.

Rayna
 
Hi Dawn,
I really like your Blackpool Chaos theme. I think it is the bumper to bumper tail lights, and the drivers unwittingly replicating rows of lights beneath the official illuminations.
Great image.
I really like the abstract too, as you know i like that sort of thing. I personally cannot see Chaos in it, however I like it very much for what it is.

Martin ;)
 
SilentGoddess said:
Hiya Dawn!

I quite like your Blackpool photo. What I like the best is the contrast between light and dark. I am amazed how even the cars have no detail, but are just silhouettes. Have you darkened the image with PP?

I like you idea for the second image and the colours you have selected - very creative. What I don't like is the combination of effects for the central part and the inner border. Maybe if you have left bust one of the inner borders... Just way too many different effects which I think splits the image.

Great job and can't wait to see what will you come up for the next theme.

Rayna
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Hiya Rayna,

You know what I like about you most is that you say it 'straight', much appreciated! (y)

The only PP I did to this photo was to do a slight darken (i.e, minor increase on the shadow slider) and then just touch up on any stray lights that were out of place, and add the border, but otherwise it is pretty much as shot. :LOL: I don't normally show my 'from camera' images', but this is one of them.

I sometimes feel 'inferior' re my 'from cam' pics ... although I think they are good, I always worry that others won't think the same, and I may be disappointed. :thinking: Maybe I need to show more of what I can produce from camera (especially as I normally tend to go for manual settings and foucs)

But then again I also luv exploring my creative side :D

So a bit of a catch 22

Either way, I hope to keep my weeks entertaining, if not debatable :p

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Marts said:
Hi Dawn,
I really like your Blackpool Chaos theme. I think it is the bumper to bumper tail lights, and the drivers unwittingly replicating rows of lights beneath the official illuminations.
Great image.
I really like the abstract too, as you know i like that sort of thing. I personally cannot see Chaos in it, however I like it very much for what it is.

Martin ;)
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Hiya Martin,

Thank you for your kind comments and valued crit. As per norm I will always try to throw a 'spin' into the equation so appreciate your thoughts on same :D

Cheers


Dawn :)
 
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Hi Dawn
I like you Chaos photo with the illuminations. A very clever idea for traffic chaos.
I can't comment on Abstract afraid as I can't get to grips with that style just yet. Well done with the processing work you put into it though.
 
Leokull said:
Hi Dawn
I like you Chaos photo with the illuminations. A very clever idea for traffic chaos.
I can't comment on Abstract afraid as I can't get to grips with that style just yet. Well done with the processing work you put into it though.
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Hiya Liam,

Thanks for your comments and compliments about the illuminations photo.

I appreciate abstract images are not everyones style and thanks for your comments about the processing.

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
I like your blackpool chaos shot Dawn, however, the abstract is really outstanding :) my eyes just keep 'pinging' round the shot and the limited colours work very well. :)
 
....You know what I like about you most is that you say it 'straight', much appreciated!
...

I sometimes feel 'inferior' re my 'from cam' pics ... although I think they are good, I always worry that others won't think the same, and I may be disappointed. Maybe I need to show more of what I can produce from camera (especially as I normally tend to go for manual settings and foucs)...
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Hi Dawn!

I believe that there is no good in telling someone lies or only what they want to hear. That is why I thy to be as objective in my comments as I can. After all from the feed back we get on our work we can decide on where to improve or were we are wrong.

I also feel that my pics straight from the camera are not what I like them to be. But I try to PP as little as I can if it's not something creative I am going for.

Keep being creative, I enjoy seeing your work!

Rayna
 
Hi Dawn, your Blackpool shot reminded me how we took our children to see the lights when they were old enough to remember, just the once. Any requests after we said 'of course you can go see Blackpool, as soon as you are old enough to get yourselves there and back safely!' :LOL:
 
Hiya guys and gals,

Wow what can I say except thank you to all of you for the fantastic support, encouragement, advice, tips & tricks and not forgetting the FUN throught this project. I am learning so much, but most of all enjoying the learning experience .... all credit to all of you (y)

So onto a very unusual theme .... considering we are only at week 9 (heaven forbid what week 52's theme will be :LOL:), and I have to say this has been a toughy .... not in the sense of ideas .... but more in the way of which one to choose.

As I have not been able to make up my mind on this one, because they all have different connections to 'finish' .... I have decided to post them all (sorry to bombard you with them all .... but heyho this is my project and even though I don't set rules .... I like to feel I can decide how I progress with this project :p).

The photos/images (as per usual) may not be to everyones liking, perhaps that is why I have been in a bit of a dilema as to which to post as I would like to cater for everyones taste. Apologies though .... there are no abstract images this week .... although I could have gone mad and done something creative, but I think these four have kept me busy enough ;)

So here we are .... week 9 .... Finish:

1. Flower Finish

5489881250_92a4faaf88_b.jpg


I am sure you will recall my 'Open' week ..... the rose (which was actually a b&w conversion of a yellow flower ... the yellow causing me so much grief re photographing) .... well same flower is here in this photo. So in this respect it has now reached its 'finish' state and has served its purpose well.

I'm not 100% happy with this image, think it is a bit soft in places .... but heyho the flowers are not going anywhere and I can reshoot if I need to at some stage. However your c&c would be greatly appreciated of same.

2. Finished Jigsaw

5489237443_be49f3c3ca_b.jpg


I absolutely love this picture/puzzle ... it takes pride and place in my lounge. One that I finished 15 years ago, had framed and had a 'modge podge' finish applied to preserve it. It was built in South Africa and finished up being carted to England 10 years ago. Considering the age, it is doing fantastic and still has all its glory of year ago.

I have to say though, this was quite a challenge to photograph .... believe me it is not easy taking a photo of a picture hanging on a wall. Which was quite a learning experience in itself and I was finished after it :LOL:

3. Finishing Touches

5489833672_f5339143e1_b.jpg


:LOL: This would have been my Joker if I couldn't come up with any ideas. It is a photo that I took at Prescott Hill Climb Races (way back in September 2009 using my Nokia N95 .... and well before my photography days). But ...... I true to form I never 'throw' anything away and landed up revisiting this pic for this theme .... which I think pretty much sums it up.

I quite like the idea of how I have taken an older, very poor photo and turned it into something a bit more interesting with some finishing touches :D

4. Finishing Flame

So .... on a final note .... after all the hype and activity of this theme, last night I lit some candles (well .... a tree of tee lights) and came up with this for my final shot

5489237619_7345c8ece8_b.jpg


Which I hope says it all .... talk about burning a candle at both ends. This one is on its last breath (so to speak) and with no more wax left it is time to wane .....

well until week 10 :p

For those of you who have actually made it to this point, well done :clap: and I look forward to the future weeks to come.

Hugs to all .... now I am off out to meet up with my best friend for a good old girly chin-wag, a glass of wine and I will catch up with you all later.

That is me Finished

over and out :LOL:

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Well you have been busy this week!

1 - Really like the lighting & mood of this one. Works great with the black background and the fallen petals at the bottom add to it.

2 - "Hard" was a few weeks ago, this is late! :p Good job capturing it without a lot of reflection.

3 - Chequered flag was my original idea, before I got onto the roadsign. I couldn't figure out where to get a good one in a week, but lucky you had an old one sitting around you could "finish" off!

4 - Original idea, and great capture. I've tried candles before and they turned out absolute rubbish. You've made me think about trying it again some time, see if I can do better now I'm more experienced.


Enjoy your might out - have lots of fun, and even more wine! :beer: (apparently in a pint glass)
 
I am struggling to come up with one idea, and you post four.

Lighting is good on the roses. A great feel to shot.

Love the jigsaw. A good shot of a good picture.

Not sure about the Prescott Hill Climb shot. I prefer the before shot.

Excellent candle photo. I must have a go at this.
 
Hi there Dawn ,glad you posted up before a few drinkies :LOL:


Love the roses shot (y) but ( & I hate nitpicking on your photo's ) I'm not sure if the fallen petals add or detract from the shot especially the little bit of one just creeping in above the bottom border ? The lighting on the 2nd rose in seems brighter than the rest . But I love the centre rose , just seems to stand out more .

Really impressed with the jigsaw , looks a real labour of love & appears to have travelled really well .Beautiful :clap:

Keep going back to look at the Prescott Hill shot.....prefer the original though . Were you going for a postcard sort of effect on the 2nd one ?

Never tried to take a shot of a candle/flame but can see me doing just that this weekend ! Very dark & moody yet calming at the same time(y)

Hope you enjoyed your night out & are ready for week 10....what torture awaits this time :LOL:
 
Wow what a response ..... even though it was a very quick post before going out tonight ... and yes, to those who asked, I had a brilliant time out :D I love my best friend, she means the world to me and thankfully she and her family are encouraging of my photography prospects and are 100% behind me ;)

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
#1 - I love the way you've captured it, the lighting is great and the composition/flowers position is also very good. I also love the processing... but... I feel the processing takes away from the "finish" look and almost looks as if the flowers are dying. Although you could say the flowers are "finished" as in they are "done" as they are now dying.

I could be talking nonsense here :LOL: I think a increase in vibrance/saturation it would add to the "finish" theme.

#2 Great image and an amazing jigsaw! :D Good capture since there are no reflections etc... Looks like an image designed in photshop or something, really like this.

#3 Not too keen I'm affraid

#4 Brilliant idea, well framed, good image :D

I think #2 steals the show for me (y)
 
:bang:

4 nice ones, but really drawn to the tones, textures and contrasts in #1. Almost has a 3D effect going on.

Cheers and stop it....:D
 
I LOVE the Finished Flowers. So pretty and simple.
 
Yours is the thread I always look for Dawn, and again not dissapointed. My fave being the jigsaw, dont know why but it just appeals to me. Like the colours and the effect in the flowers shot, was there much PP done on that shot?
 
Ray S said:
Well you have been busy this week!

1 - Really like the lighting & mood of this one. Works great with the black background and the fallen petals at the bottom add to it.

2 - "Hard" was a few weeks ago, this is late! :p Good job capturing it without a lot of reflection.

3 - Chequered flag was my original idea, before I got onto the roadsign. I couldn't figure out where to get a good one in a week, but lucky you had an old one sitting around you could "finish" off!

4 - Original idea, and great capture. I've tried candles before and they turned out absolute rubbish. You've made me think about trying it again some time, see if I can do better now I'm more experienced.

Enjoy your might out - have lots of fun, and even more wine! :beer: (apparently in a pint glass)
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Hiya Ray,

Thanks for the indepth comments, all much appreciated.

I was in two minds at first about the petals but decided to leave them in as they seemed to emphasise the end of the flowers life.

:LOL: about the 'hard' .... and indeed it was a hard job getting a photo without reflection, not to mention that I had to get the picture straight on the wall and the camera on tripod level. Lighting was the tricky bit ... eventually I put the light on in my display cabinet which is very soft and a distance from the picture .... otherwise it was pretty much dark so the shutter stayed open for quite some time.

After remembering about the Prescott pic, I am going to keep most pics (well at least the ones I think I could do something with even if they are not the best).

I have taken a few candle photos before and tried various camera settings, but somehow find that selecting 'BULB' and F8 or F11 seems to work best, but then again it is a matter of trying different options.

Turbo weasel said:
I am struggling to come up with one idea, and you post four.

Lighting is good on the roses. A great feel to shot.

Love the jigsaw. A good shot of a good picture.

Not sure about the Prescott Hill Climb shot. I prefer the before shot.

Excellent candle photo. I must have a go at this.
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Hiya Ian,

Thanks for the comments (y) Lighting on the rose was again a bit tricky as I couldn't use harsh light as it just made the flowers look over exposed. If I remember correct, for this shot I finally resorted to opening the lounge door to let some light from the hallway filter through and .... I also used candle light (hence why I also posted the candle shot).

I am very pleased with the jigsaw shot too, especially as it was probably the most difficult of the 4 to shoot.

I wan't sure at all about posting the Prescott pic, but as it took some time to think about what I could do with it and the processing I had to add it.

Candles are actually great to photograph .... and actually make a great lighting source too for lighting a subject .... it adds a soft warm light to an image. Something I will be using again in the future.

blondie606 said:
Love the roses shot (y) but ( & I hate nitpicking on your photo's ) I'm not sure if the fallen petals add or detract from the shot especially the little bit of one just creeping in above the bottom border ? The lighting on the 2nd rose in seems brighter than the rest . But I love the centre rose , just seems to stand out more .

Really impressed with the jigsaw , looks a real labour of love & appears to have travelled really well .Beautiful :clap:

Keep going back to look at the Prescott Hill shot.....prefer the original though . Were you going for a postcard sort of effect on the 2nd one ?

Never tried to take a shot of a candle/flame but can see me doing just that this weekend ! Very dark & moody yet calming at the same time(y)

Hope you enjoyed your night out & are ready for week 10....what torture awaits this time
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Hiya Lynne,

Thanks for the critique and comments .... always appreciated.

As I said above, at first I wasn't sure about the fallen petals ... but decided to leave them in. Take your point about the bit of petal peeking above the frame, perhaps I should have cloned that one. I've explained above about the lighting of the roses, so perhaps a combination of the light from the hall (lighting the right flowers) being of different strength to candle light on the left is what has caused this. The centre rose is the one I used for my 'Open' week.

BTW it took a week of evenings to build the jigsaw, and indeed it has travelled well. I've never seen another like it .... I should see if I can find it online .... I think it was either a Panarama or Ravensburg (memory fails me now)

For the Prescott pic, yes I was trying to create a sort of postcard effect, but also create an image that kind of looked like it was one of those European road races that go for miles and miles .... hence the sort of post mark with the wrinkle line to give the impression of the distance travelled and then also added the faded 83 to try to give a sort of race number feel.

Candles are great both for lighting as as subject .... I'm sure you will have fun photographing them. Good luck

Night out was fantastic thanks, it's been a while since I went out so was nice change.

posiview said:
4 nice ones, but really drawn to the tones, textures and contrasts in #1. Almost has a 3D effect going on.

Cheers and stop it....:D
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Hiya Andy

Thanks for the comments, like your idea about the 3D effect of #1.

What do you mean by 'stop it' :LOL:

dubcat said:
Love the flower picture. The colours are amazing.
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JackieC said:
I LOVE the Finished Flowers. So pretty and simple.
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Thanks for the comments Dubcat and Jackie

hewhoknows said:
Yours is the thread I always look for Dawn, and again not dissapointed. My fave being the jigsaw, dont know why but it just appeals to me. Like the colours and the effect in the flowers shot, was there much PP done on that shot?
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Hiya Matt,

Awww thanks for the comments, glad you look out for my thread, that means a lot to me :)

I think the jigsaw is my fav too, although I like all of them. But that one especially as it looks just like the one hanging on the wall (and believe me it wasn't easy getting to that result).

As for the flowers shot, there wasn't too much pp'ing appart from a bit of a sharpen and I increased the shadow slider to get the background darker (especially where there was a bit of light) then there was a bit of cloning of the stray spot here and there.

Thanks everyone for your valuable comments and feedback, it is all very encouraging.

Now to wait for week 10 .... and for me to catch up on yours and other 52'ers threads.

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Hiya Dawn, the jigsaw photograph is number 1 for me! I love the textures in there along with the colours, there is something about it which draws me to look at it again and again, so a big well done there, also like the flowers, the lighting is very affective.

I'm a bit stuck this week, so much going on.
 
michael23 said:
Hiya Dawn, the jigsaw photograph is number 1 for me! I love the textures in there along with the colours, there is something about it which draws me to look at it again and again, so a big well done there, also like the flowers, the lighting is very affective.

I'm a bit stuck this week, so much going on.
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Hiya Michael

Thanks for your kind words and comments. Indeed, I know what you mean about the jigsaw, I often find myself gazing at the picture hanging on the wall and then looking out of my lounge window toward the woodlands infront of the house and expect to see the maidens walking through the woods just like in the picture :LOL:

The more I look at the flower photo, the more I like it too. I think I might have that one printed onto a canvas.

I am sure you will think of something for this week, good luck and I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Hi Dawn,
Well you've been busy his week.
I really like the flower image, love the colours and the composition.
The jigsaw is my favourite. My mum does lots of jigsaws and i'll be showing her your image. I like the lighting and the colours.
I'm not fussed on your Prescott image. I can see what you were attempting but it really doesn't do anything for me.
Your candle image is my second favourite. You have captured the colours and lighting just right and it is very effective.
best wishes
Ceri
 
fido18 said:
Hi Dawn,
Well you've been busy his week.
I really like the flower image, love the colours and the composition.
The jigsaw is my favourite. My mum does lots of jigsaws and i'll be showing her your image. I like the lighting and the colours.
I'm not fussed on your Prescott image. I can see what you were attempting but it really doesn't do anything for me.
Your candle image is my second favourite. You have captured the colours and lighting just right and it is very effective.
best wishes
Ceri
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Hiya Ceri,

Thanks for the comments and feedback on the pics, all much appeciated.

I have been online trying to find the name of the jigsaw ... it is so long ago that it was bought and built and unfortunately I don't have the original box anymore to find the name.

It has to be one of my better shots (especially as it took so much effort to get it right).

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Hi Dawn,

Love your first picture of the flowers, I love the angle and the focus on the petals, then the blur of the vase!

I also like the candle as it communicates the message so well and the lighting is very nice :)

Will :D.
 
Will James said:
Hi Dawn,

Love your first picture of the flowers, I love the angle and the focus on the petals, then the blur of the vase!

I also like the candle as it communicates the message so well and the lighting is very nice :)

Will :D.
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Hiya Will

Thanks for the comments, much appreciated.

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Some very good shots there. My personal favourite has to be the flowers. Lovely DOF on this and I think you got the lighting just right. I also like the jigsaw. Looks stunning in its frame.
 
chriseve1979 said:
Some very good shots there. My personal favourite has to be the flowers. Lovely DOF on this and I think you got the lighting just right. I also like the jigsaw. Looks stunning in its frame.
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Hiya Chris,

Thanks for your comments and pointing out your favourite. I must say I like the flowers too and think I might have this one printed and framed.

Now to think about week 10 .... hmmm :thinking:

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
the flowers win it for me of those three, LOVE the colours in that pic!
 
whitedeer said:
the flowers win it for me of those three, LOVE the colours in that pic!
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Hiya Fleur,

Thank you for your kind comments.

I seem to be getting the nack of photographing flowers now, and find I am drawn to them, so much so, that I buy bunches of them now not only for the home, but to photograph. I even find, at this time of the year, I am getting out more to find the latest spring flowers coming into bloom.

So I think there may be a couple more featured throughout my 52 this year :D

Now to work on week 10 (for which I have a few ideas)

Cheers

Dawn :)
 
Hiya all,

Yet again another week has flown past and here we are at week 10.

Thanks to all who commented on my week 9 and other weeks. All your words are a great support and encourage my progress with this project.

When I saw what the theme was last night I was very happy, as I had just the ideas for it. So earlier today I got them shot and ready to post.

I have a very busy week ahead so wanted to get these done a.s.a.p.

As I have already posted a couple of triptychs I decided against that idea for this theme but chose to go with the following:

1. The Trio

5503778385_aef46edba4_b.jpg


I collect musical band figurines, and this is the only 'Trio' out of all the collections .... so it was escape from the display cabinet for a photo shoot :D

2. Tulip Trio

5503777797_f99f5d19f9_b.jpg


I bought 5 bouquets of flowers last weekend, and as Spring is on its way I thought it quite appropriate to brighten up this week with some live flowers (as opposed to the dead ones from last week). Also wanted to try shooting flowers using natural light, which was great fun and quite a learning experience.

I hope you enjoy these two photos as much as I enjoyed taking them.

As per usual, all comments and critique will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Dawn :)
 
Hi Dawn!

Finally I have time to do a recap on your "Finish" photos and to my surprise you are ready and with the next theme!
Ok, FINISH! I love your rose photo! I like the lighting of the flowers and the DOF. What I like the best is how the yellow is not very bright but a bit dimmed. I would enjoy looking at the photo from my wall. I just find the petals on the table a bit distracting and I would have preferred not to have them in the shot. Because I know you are creative person you may try to PP the flowers with the Plastic Wrap in Photoshop. I think it will look good! But definitely #1 is my favourite.
The second place is for the jigsaw. I image on the jigsaw and the frame create very complete composition. The lighting also makes it look like an old painting from a gallery!
Photos #3 and #4...hm... to be honest not a fan! But love the first two so you congrats on them! ;)

For the "Trio" theme...
I have to say I like both photos but prefer the musicians. The lighting I think is good and also the BG you have selected complements the photo and the colours in the figurines. The photo reminds me of an old photo in a magazine or newspaper. Great job and quite handy to have such beautiful collection!

The tulip shot is good too but for me the lighting is a bit..hmm.. not right. I would like to see the front of the flowers bit more lighted. Now I feel there is not mus of a detail in the flowers and those water drops on the front are bit lost. The composition is very good though!

Rayna
 
I had to smile when I saw your first trio. Well composted and exposed. The background really duits to mood of the photograph.

Nice composition with the tulips. Thing I'd like to see a tad more depth and the tulips look a bit dark (on my work's PC).

Cheers.
 
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