* Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #863 / Revived #083 on 2024 10 30 *

Following with keen interest.
There is a "Hustler" getting his education here.
I like how the diagonal of the pool table's edge leads to the hand in motion.

For me the third and fourth are the best portraits here. Probably because they have good lighting, good composition and show the subjects in a relaxed way (for me, the best portraits do not necessarily include a smiling expression - smiles often look forced.)

Nice day.
Did you get any shots of the kitesurfer out of the water and airborne?
Or was this a timid or beginning surfer?

The deer are indeed a dear inclusion.
Now an alligator please, stalking.
I love the mood that the fog creates.

The keyword here is disorientation and it works a charm.

The way the graffiti is spread over two walls at an angle with each other, creates a paradoxical but wonderful 3D effect.
Our brain knows that that angle is "inwards" (away from the viewer) and still the snake seems to protrude from the walls (towards the viewer).
You have chosen the perfect vantage point to show us that illusion.

And the graffiti artist gets extra points for creating a pole for the snake to "dance" on, that has no grounding but only tops:
telephone pole on one side and palm tree on the other.

It's a bewildering concept but it works perfectly because it takes a moment of logical reasoning to realize that this is not a normal scene.

The best surrealism is the kind where the "realism" hits you first and the "sur" seeps in a bit slower

Your title it very apt.
If you almost crawl into your eating bowl, that is a clear sign that you will not allow competitors for the food...
It's a good shot of interesing behaviour.
A bonus element is that the blueish shades on the head of the lizard (some kind of "varaan" (that is the flemish word, I don't know the translation), complement nicely with the yellow of his food.
If you were to consider a more concentrated view, it would be an option to crop rather severely, getting rid of most of the foreground and background and a large part of the tail (impressive though it is) to end up with a close up of head, bowl, back and legs.

While I like the composition as shown, I think I would like it even better with just a bit more dark ground on the bottom, as a stronger baseline.

Agree. That sky is surreal.

Pleased to see the rectangles get noticed. The image is full of rectangles and part rectangles. I was very aware of them and their positioning when I took the shot.

At the same or smaller equivalent exposure I have no difficulty in getting a natural looking sky.

Maybe Chris shot sooc jpeg and the camera picture style settings outputted a dark sky?

You can see Chris' exif data in his post at

dprevived.com/t/this-week-through-your-eyes-20241102/6399/post/87562/

This is a similar scene with a very similar exposure* that Chris used and the sky looks ok on my screen.

f/8, 1/2000s, ISO 100

* exposure - amount of light striking the sensor per unit area during a shutter actuation.

The foreground is uninspiring and doesn't interest me in any way.

If you like it that is fine.

Not everyone sees and interprets images the same way and that is the way it should be.

I'm running with the cropped version.

That is basically a rinse and repeat of your initial opinions. That is fine.

I did look at and think about the whole image before forming my opinion of it.

I still disagree about the foreground for the reasons posted earlier.

My instant reaction was to look for the dogs as in that iconic picture from a long time ago. I went looking for it to refresh my memory and all I could find were imitations...

I have to ask what is the pretty coloured stick like object in the bottom right corner?

A pleasant image that invokes a sense of serenity, calmness. The mist conveys the early part of the day with no breeze and little sun to burn it off. The deer seems aware of your presence.

I think there are times of the day, especially close to sun up / sun down where there are changes in the natural light that our mind may filter out but the camera catches.

Wonderful specimen. Great detail shows off the colour variations and intricacies of his scales, skin folds and incredible head.
The tree roots and clutter on the ground show his environment. The food in and around the bowl, although integral to the image, is the outlier.

I adore that church. It is as if a mental image acquired from a story has come to life. I don't know if it is the phone processing or the architecture (brickwork, lines and colours) or both. Minnie mentioned a postcard. When I view it, it is as if I am looking at a real 3D scene. Not many photos convey that much depth. The colours of sky only add to it...

To catch a sky like that is one thing but to get the location and industrial aspects with it is another. Well done.