More Power!

Martin, you weren't that far off. In a photo, appearance can be as or even more relevant than reality. It does appear as if she were pasted in and that matters to me as much as whether she was or wasn't.* Aside from the obvious, which is that no one floats in air like that, the reason she appears pasted in is that she was propped up by a barstool which has been cloned out along with a chandelier that was nearby. There's little difference, in terms of technical execution, between pasting something into a photo and cloning things surrounding a subject out of a photo. Doing either often leads the viewer to feel the incongruity, especially when visual remnants of the cloning out or pasting in remain and even more especially when the things cloned out were providing the reasons for the physics of what we're seeing. If you look at the top edge of the mirror, you'll see where the chandelier was cloned out and if you notice the odd draping of her clothing you'll see where the material was held up by the bar stool. Such visual anomalies, while not necessarily as apparent or precisely discernible before we are told what was done, still add to our sense that something appears not quite as it would otherwise be, thus the girl can seem pasted in.

* Though there may be some flaws in execution, the pasted in feeling seems appropriate to the somewhat surreal character of the photo, in which a sense of manipulation is often integral to a surrealist approach. The whole thing is a little more gimmicky than I tend to like and doesn't really hold my attention for more time than it takes to recognize the cuteness but, as with last week's photo, that's a matter of my own taste.

It seems to me that in a candid shot, an incongruously funny expression is sometimes all that is needed to make a picture funny, but in a set-up, like this, the humor of the set-up has to be clear. But the humor isn't really clear here. It's funny because the girl's expression is funny (well, very funny) isn't enough. So the fact that the subject looks pasted in isn't the dealbreaker for me; it's the fact that this is a set-up that's supposed to be funny, but really isn't.

<<<So the fact that the subject looks pasted in isn't the dealbreaker for me; it's the fact that this is a set-up that's supposed to be funny, but really isn't.>>>

Martin, on this we agree. What I was saying was that the fact that she looks pasted in matters to me in that it's an important visual observation and the fact that she looks pasted in can matter more than whether she actually was or not, since we are looking at a photo and not at the reality that was photographed. But, as for you, the pasted in look is not the reason this photo doesn't work well for me.

Congratulations, very funny

Excelent

funny! i like the surreal look of it, the colors and the girls expression.

Ditto ,Martin, especialy the sentence Fred's citation of yours in the begining of his comment....

Braxton, original composition that the elves notice and thought worthy of selecting. Congratulations. Her expression is priceless with beautiful colors. Warm regards.

Aside from the technical and creative excellence that went into this photo, any image that successfully incorporates humor, whether in-your-face or more subtle, is quite an accomplishment.

I'm surprised people actually find this photo funny, but of course that's what makes horse racing and photography interesting. There's a cuteness about it, but it's so obvious that it just doesn't seem funny to me. There's nothing genuine about the expression, IMO. I don't mind forced or obvious poses or expressions, but it seems to me they're better when there is something authentic to even a very theatrical look. It's a fairly obvious put on to go with the obvious story trying to be told. There are degrees and levels and layers to funniness. I think about the funnier comedians. Most of their jokes operate on a variety of or at least 2 levels. This joke (if it is one) is so one-dimensional and straight-forward. There's really nothing much to it. To me, it would be funnier, for example, if everything supported the illusion that she were flying EXCEPT maybe her hair would be hanging perfectly straight and un-windblown even with the hair dryer obviously on and pointing right at her. That's just a for instance. There are many other things that could make this funny. Frankly, I'd even find it funnier if the stool she was propped up on were left IN the photo and the deconstruction of photographic jokes and illusions could be somehow visually commented on or acknowledged and/or played with . . .

So creative - great masking! Love it

I guess it must have said high power on the box -- truly great shot