talksII

Masterpiece of open mind portrait. What she is dreaming about. Works great with the unsharp details of the back. The eye lines are expressive ... .Congs7. BR JV

A super shot which is very original. The handling of the tones  is excellent and bring the life out in the eyes. Well done William

Such a beautiful and compelling portrait. I think it should be POW, as there are questions on how it was made. It either took tremendous patience, or is a fine composite. I'm leaning toward the latter.

Very beautiful image

Brilliant image, Andris...very creatively done...expression suit very well with the composition and tonality...my best

For me 7/7.  WONDERFUL portrait

Regards AW

Stunning!

very good shot!!!

Hi Andris-

The expression is priceless. The eyes are so piercing. A fabulous capture.

-Paul

great portrait and idea heinz

amazing picture .. compliments!!

Excellent work.

Innovative and creative an image that is immediately spell binding and haunting. Impressive B & W tones and dof. First class image. Top marlks!

Best Regards

Alf

This is incredible... such a mournful melancholy.  The beauty in her face, and the distortions in the reflections just add such wonderful subtle variations.

The capture is by itself superb. I like the pancromatic feel, as in the old days of the Ilford paper, with rich texture and deep contrasts in the hair. Very creative work. Congratulations.

Awesome work! Well worth a 7.

Regards,

Alain

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Very evocative photograph. Full of soul, as it were. Creative use of the water surface and good post processing. I very much like the colours and tones of the photograph. Good job by the model, as well.

Very calm photo. She probably stood very still for a while, no water waves. Nice done, DDD

Love the black and white, the d.o.f., and the square format. I can't help but wonder, though, if the reflection is real or a product of post-shoot processing. Although it does add another dimension to the photograph, it just looks a bit too clearly defined to be real.

Andris:
Congratulations!
I suspect I've not seen a portrait photograph with the same degree of haunting beauty as this one. The subject's eyes and facial expression convey the feeling that she simply is part of the lake. It reminds me of the Lady of the Lake legend.
My best,
michael

There is this nagging question in the back of my head: What if the film Deliverance (1969) had been about four women who decided to canoe the Chattooga, instead of the guys played by Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Jon Voigt, and Ronny Cox?

In other words, I just cannot quite get past the idea that we are looking at her unseeing eyes frozen open after her bra strap got stuck on an underwater obstruction just past the last rapids. Maybe we better tie some rocks to her, guys, heave her overboard, and trust that she doesn't come bobbing belly-up downstream in the reservoir some months later.

I think that the sheriff is going to want an inquiry about this one. This woman is beautiful, but she appears to have been seriously abused, addled, or worse. Live women who will look like this for you will also sit down, roll over, and heel.

Apart from these considerations, I agree with everything Michael just said above: "The subject's eyes and facial expression convey the feeling that she simply is part of the lake." It reminds me of the last scenes of the movie filmed two counties west of my house in the late sixties.

Sorry, guys. This one is not in my fantasy book. There is an unfortunate nightmarish quality to it for me.

--Lannie