This is an photo-manipulation image I put together some time last year. What do you guys think of it.

Your critiques are welcome.

I love it, it looks like on old work or art!

Thanks 2-ton, that was the feeling I was trying to portray. The table was actually a small piece of driftwood that I took a picture of. Everything with exception of the table legs and the skull were actual photos.

It's perfect with Halloween around the corner.

wallace: nice to see you here again . great work on the still life, it really does remind you of one of those classic oil paintings! you've caught the atmosphere and the play of light and shadow very well.

I like the contrast! I agree with AnMal, it has a classic feel. Something about the cheese stands out to me, though, but I can't put my finger on why.

Because you're a cat who wants to bribe a mouse....(avatar )

I like the contrasts! I don't like the bottle much though, it seems a bit "cartoon" like, not as real as the other "pictures".
What is next to the cheese? Is that a broken piece or a mouse?

Very nice artwork Wallace.
Only thing i will say is why is the shadow so high up on the bottle? (I can only think of the one that would be the base). Maybe I need to study it longer

Hey Wallace,
I like it too, it has a 'mood' to it.
I also agree with the last two comments about the bottle.
It looks a little 2D, I think it needs more shading on one side(s) of the bottle to give it roundness.
Good to have your presence back. I've missed your 'purple-ness'

It seems like the below half of the knife is in shadow.
This could'nt be. From the point where the light is coming there could'nt be a shadow on the knife itself

An excellent still life wallace. I love it!

It's very beautifull and interesting picture. Maybe you could improve the shadows and lights? by retouching this way for example?

I am a big fan of "Le Caravage" the master of the shadow and the light :
LeCaravage

Makes me think of pirates. Maybe because of the knife stuck in the table and the skull set upon it. I think a candle in the skull would look cool.

Nicely done though.

It looks good. Great work on getting the driftwood to look like a tabletop and the shadows look pretty much spot on. The only exception is the shadow from the knife. I'm still learning about shadows, and so could well be completely wrong, but as the knife shadow falls on the bread I thought it's direction might distort slightly with the curvature of the bread. Like I say not sure though. Everything else looks blended in real well. Nice job.

Thanks you guys for all the fine comments. I really wasn't thinking about Halloween when I posted the image, but I guess it is fitting.



Just to the right of the cheese-wedge is a mouse.
Mice can sometimes be very inconspicuous even in plain sight. It is rather tiny, but I think I got it's scale right nonetheless.
I wasn't very happy with the bottle either, but I liked it's bottle's color in the image so I left it as it was.


I wouldn't go nuts studying it, I know there are some flaws especially with the shadows.


Yes your right that does appear to be the case. I didn't apply a shadow to the knife as you suggested. It just ended up that way.


Thanks for taking the time to post some examples. You are without a doubt correct with your examples.


It seems that I'm always working on my shadows and lighting. My brain sometimes wants me to do things backward and I always struggle with this.
Thanks for your comment and your completely right about the shadowing.

I have a French question : what is the cheese? it looks like the "tome de savoie" very good cheese from cow's milk

Nice work Wallace, I like how you have managed to replicate the colours on the images so they blend together.

Welcome back to the fold Wallace.

I like that picture, the composition is tranquil. I don't know if you did it on purpose or not but it's super sharp. I would soften the edges a little bit. Unless that's the effect you were going for. Also the shadow of the knife seems a little bit out of place. Would be better if it followed the contour of the table before it goes up on the bread. That would give it more realistic depth. But all in all I think this is awesome.

Thanks Ek22 for the welcome, your appreciation of the image and your astute observations.

The sharpness was a way of compensating for my poor photography ability's and low-grade camera.

Your quite right about the edges. Maybe a 'selective gaussian blur' could improve it, but I'm not sure.
As for the shadows, they will remain as is.