The colour in the first shot is vibrant Ted. Is it a wide angle? I'm not so keen on the lansdscape, the forground seems dark on my monitor and could do with a lift. The sky detail is beautiful though.
David

The ghostly stone hand and the frozen strand for me too. Wonderful.
David

For me the most visually attractive is #2, the centre of a CD case.
David

A guy in our camera club did this sort of thing as well. It's very eye catching but as you say Mike it only works with certain subjects. Of your pictures I think the church with magic pointing and the two big eyed bugs are very effective with this filter. And I really like the nail with go-faster stripes.
David

Cathedral in winter
[IMG]http://i799.photobucket.com/albums/yy273/Davidtrout2/Cathedralinwinter.jpg[/IMG]

The Towers of Durham
[IMG]http://i799.photobucket.com/albums/yy273/Davidtrout2/TheTowersofDurham.jpg[/IMG]

Winter Light
[IMG]http://i799.photobucket.com/albums/yy273/Davidtrout2/WinterLight.jpg[/IMG]
All taken Monday December 6, 2010, in the heart of Durham City. K5+16-50mm lens. C+C positively welcomed.
David

Good subject.
David

Fortnightly Comp: Abstract impressionism

Thanks for entering the competition, I’m disappointed that there weren’t more entries but I’ve enjoyed looking at these pictures from you brave people. I probably made a poor choice of subject this fortnight but between this and the weekly competition so many topics have already been done it’s getting increasingly difficult to come up with something new.
However now it’s past deadline here goes with the judging: Just my views and not the outpouring of wisdom you all really deserve.

Teeth by Cardiff Gareth

OK I give up. I haven’t a clue what it is but no doubt when I find out I’ll kick myself. Whatever it is Gareth it’s an attractive shape and the quality of the image is beautiful. Glass, metal or some ceramic material? Whatever it has a lovely reflective surface and the repeating shapes make a great pattern. I’m not sure it reminds of teeth but if it does you then that’s fine by me.
The downside is that the picture is all in the left of the frame and that leaves a big blank space down the entire right side so that it doesn’t feel balanced.

Maxilla by Aliengrove
The colours grab you giving the picture immediate impact. It’s the work of a transformer sculptor but when a photographer comes along and expertly selects which elements to include in the frame and how to position them within the picture space then it is no mere copy of another artist’s work. This to me is an original picture where the credit goes to the photographer for observance and selection to create a new image.
I love the vibrancy of the colours.

Silicon City by GlynM
We’re looking here at a cityscape of time in the not too distant future. I’ve seen the idea before, and I believe you have done this sort of thing previously Glyn but this is as good as it gets. The inside of this piece of technology does indeed look like city streets between skyscrapers.

Frozen Art by Tozza
Good topical stuff Tony, the frost is very attractive. The green of the foliage is just about right but I think the overall sharpness of the image is just a little off. Perhaps using a faster ISO than 100 would have given you a bit more to play with in both shutter speed and f-stop. I know Pentax shake reduction is pretty good but handheld when you are this close to the subject is risky.

Disappointment, frustration etc by Dr Orloff
Well it could be a picture from deep space, a newly discovered planet orbiting a distant star. If only!! It’s really an outbreak of black spot.
In your anger and frustration you’ve come up with a most original idea for the competition and full marks for that. Congratulations on turning a problem into a photo opportunity.

Isaac’s Treasure by JudithAnn
Now I just love this. So simple, so basic in photographic terms, yet to me it has real feeling. A sentimental attachment makes this a worthy entry. I know it wouldn’t have quite the same effect on me without your description JudithAnn but it is a very well photographed image and the piece of driftwood really does look like the real thing.

Looking Glass House by i-Berg
The idea is good but the spots of burned out highlights detract from the image. There are some lovely smooth surfaces in the bottles, or jars, and the abstract patterns are very appealing. There are some delightful shapes and surfaces to explore in there.
But those highlights rather spoil it. The small, more colourful spots are fine but there are some big areas of burn out, presumably from lights.

Sad face by Sandinista
This is a well seen picture, in some ways related to Aliengrove’s entry but without the dynamic colour. It’s interesting that you did the black and white conversion in camera rather than during post processing. I wonder if this is why the overall image is just a little flat. You might have had more control over the contrast later in Photoshop or whatever PP you use. But the idea is good and top marks for being observant.

Results:
1: Aliengrove.
2: JudithAnn.
3: GlynM.

Special mention to Dr Orloff for turning a disaster into a picture.

Blown highlights remain blown whatever you shoot in but if they have not totally gone and are borderline you stand a better chance of recovering detail by using RAW.
I tend to under expose by 1/3rd of a stop, sometimes 2/3rds or more depending on conditions. It's easier to lift dark areas than it is to recover the highlights, and this is best done in RAW.
There's nothing wrong with your black and white pictures Andrew but I find I get better results converting to mono in RAW.
David

Your third attempt is by far the best. The blue cast is easily remedied by selectively slightly desaturating the worst affected areas.
David

The chip shop is the one for me, it is a typical slice of realism as seen in any British town. Even the wet floor warning sign is so important to the story line. The average camera club judge would dismiss this as poor composition, but for me its the final touch to complete the picture.
David