As usual, another great gallery. It's fun to see the various interpretations and subsequent execution of those interpretations with various vintages of photographic equipment. I am heartened to see photographs taken with screwmount and 6x7 gear. There is hope for us non-digitalians yet <g>.
So, my comments will be brief, and I really only have time to mention those that really jumped out at me. There are many other outstanding photos other than those I'm about to mention, but these are the standouts: Gianfrance Irlanda, "Road to Avernus": Amazing colour, the sort of washed out background gives it a nostalgic look that adds to the photo, IMHO. Ken Waller, "Lonesome Tree": Incredible colours - the justaposition between sky and grainfield is amazing. Great compostion. Fred Widall, "Sunrise on Kaoui": It's been freezing rain or just plain cold rain (high of about 2 degrees today) relentlessly. Miserable day. I needed your photo. Aaaaaaahhhhhh. <g> Lovely silhouette, lovely sky, lovely composition. Thomas Calkolic, "Winter Mist": I think this is my favourite of the month. In fact, I'll state categorically that it is my favourite. It's one thing to see a scene like this, quite another to recognize it as a great photograph and another thing again to execute that vision into that photo. You've done it here. No need to say anything more. Beautiful! Almost makes me like winter (just joking, I really do like winter. the Canadian Culture and Thought-control Department would prosecute me if I didn't say that <g>). Amita Guha, "By Cooper Lake": Simple yet lovely. Nice colours. Just very pretty. Dan Maytola, "Tall Pines": I've seen shots like this of tall trees, particularly pines. I don't know if they're a cliche or not, but I like them generally, and more specifically I like this one. It's just a really cool shot. Nice sky, too. Wendy Beard, "Tree ;-)": I don't know what the smiley is for in the title (other than the fact that it's always nice to smile <g>). This is another of those very simple shots that stands out in part due to that very simplicity. Well composed, interesting patterns and non-patterns. I could look at this for a long time just "getting into it", and that's always a sign of a good photo. Erin Dayton, "Refraction": Maybe it's in the genes? <g> Proving that sometimes breaking the "rules" works, shooting this one into the sun works very well, as does the choice of a star filter. Everything seems a bit soft, but really it only adds to the ethereal feel of this lovely photo. Bruce Dayton, "YAC - Yet Another Cypress": YAGP - Yet Another Great Photo. I'm always impressed by trees that seem to have found an impossible place on the side of a cliff to hang onto, then seem to thrive despite the odds. I like the dark cliffs (I think if those trees in the foreground were "properly" exposed, they'd distract), the sea and the sky are lovely, and the semi-silhouette of the tree works very well. Composition is about perfect, with the tree right where it should be, and cliff/water/sky all in the right proportion and balance. Lovely, Bruce. Well, that's about it. All the others were terrific, but these ones really spoke to me. cheers, frank -- "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept." -Henri Cartier-Bresson
