Jessica~Mask

Very 1920... It doesn't work for me, largely because the background becomes an undifferentiated mid-grey. It lacks punch. Just my cheap opinion :-)

Graham

This image caught my eye fairly quickly. For some reason, it reminds me of images done in the early part of the twentieth century.

Although the tones are somewhat muted, I think they work with the feel of the image. I'm not seeing any "un-differentiated mid-grays," either. I see shadows, mid-tones, and highlights...just not pure blacks and whites, which again, fit the tone of the image. The composition is lovely.

The only real issue I have with the image is the coloring of the mask. Although it could be construed as an attempt to mimic early hand-coloring, it breaks the spell of the shot for me. I'm not a big fan of coloring compositional elements in an image. Everyone has done it at one time or another in their career (I'm guilty, too) but it's been done so much now that it has become a cliche. This photograph would have worked just as well without it.

But all in all, an outstanding image.