Yeah, I know, so what else is new, right? This month I've determined that I'm going to try to comment on all of them. I've only looked at the 'nails so far, so I'm just looking at them more or less cold, and giving my first blush comments, with little or no preparation. So, in order of appearance:
"Afterglow" by Thomas Cakalic - Incredible. When I opened it, I thought it was the Northern Lights, but from your comments, it seems that it was merely a sunset taken with a long exposure? The warm glow along with the few stars is something that I've not seen with my own eyes; I guess this is something that only a long exposure could "see". Love the silhouette skyline. I can't say a bad thing about this. It's just incredible. Thanks for posting it. "So Ya Wanted Sumthin Red" by Ken Waller - Same adjective as above: Incredible. It's easy to trash sunsets or sunrises as being a dime a dozen, or corny or whatever. But, when they're done right, is anything more beautiful, even to a jaded old guy like me? I think not. The spit of land works so beautifully to give the scene balance, the oval-looking sun through the clouds and new-day haze, the colours, the long reflection of the sun on the water, the patterns of the clouds. Does a sunrise get more beautiful? Makes me want to get up earlier (or just stay up all night). Thanks. "Another Marshfield Sunset" by Butch Black - Love the black mass of land, with the little bit of red reflection on a lake or pond at the left. The patterns of the clouds and the deep crimson sky make me yearn for summer. So, Butch, where's Marshfield? It looks just about perfect. Great shot. "Red Leaves" by Alan Chan - A bit less spectacular and more subtle than the first three, but that's why I like it. It is very autumnal in it's understatedness (is that a word?). You're decision to desaturate the green works very well, and to my eye is quite natural looking. Composition, with the tree trunk smack dab in the middle is somehow (for reasons I can't explain) very pleasing. There's a sort of wistfullness that I get every fall, when most (but not all) of the leaves have fallen. They're still pretty on the ground, but I know that we're not going to see leaves again for about 6 or 7 months. You're photo makes me feel the chill in the air. You've captured the mixed feeling I have about fall very well. "Red Leave in the Blackstone River" by Ray Ford - Another sort of wistful photo - a lone leave, being swept away in a river, sort of hanging on for dear life on a rock. I like it. A lot. the reflections are rather surreal - hard to tell what's actually there and what's reflected. Compostion is top notch. For some reason, I like that the water is ~over~ the leave, and the leave isn't floating on the surface of the water. Another wonderful photo. Thanks. I think that's about it for now. I hope to be able to do another 5 or 6 later today (after football), and do a few more every evening until I'm done. Looks like another winner of a gallery! cheers, frank -- "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept." -Henri Cartier-Bresson
