October 'Get Close' contest winners

Congratulations everyone!

These are amazing! What a great display for the top 10!

You know Teresa - we should make a calendar after the first year! :-)

rats! and I had the 100 bucks spent already!

seriously though, good stuff. I voted for myself, but my 2nd and 3rd choices are represented in this bunch, so that's pretty cool.

I agree, great top 10. Looks like bugs and flowers was the way to go. Does anyone know what the picture titled "Invasion" is a close up of? Congrats to all!

ED NOTE: Jason, I just posted that info: It's condensation on plastic wrap.
- Teresa

Terrific choices! Cheers to Teresa who was willing to "change horses in midstream" as the saying goes and to John Blanding for providing the professional's input. This is a real celebration of fine and fun photography.

Winner confirms what we've known for years -- kitties rule!

"Green Eye" is indeed striking in composition and colors. But I find the pupil, which should be the focal point, to be slightly out of focus. I would also crop out a sliver of the left side and burn in the lower left corner to eliminate the hot spots.

"Nose Maze" is my favorite. Simple in composition and use of a single color (can work well as b/w), well-focused with a shallow DOF bringing the attention to what is important, and tells a story that tickles my funny bone.

The droplets along the petals' edges of "Pearls" appear to be too numerous and too regular in shape and spacing. They do not look natural to me. But then Mother Nature can surprise us, and I am by no means a purist when it comes to digital manipulation. Perhaps sashym can clarify.

superb work, congrats to all...

More thoughts on "Nose Maze".

Just noticed that it was shot at very high ISO (what noise?) with the least expensive camera used here. A vindication that you don't need any expensive or fancy equipment for good images like this.

When I look at images that I like, I think about how I would shoot them. Not to duplicate them exactly, but in different ways. Take "Nose Maze" as an example. I imagine a shot that would have a somewhat wider width and twice the height. The bottom half would remain pretty much the same. The added top half would include an out of focus background of the dog's owner (who happens to bear a resemblance to the dog!) snoozing on a couch or arm chair. The title would be "Concerto in zzzzzz".

Will I ever take such a shot? Probably not (I don't own that dog, nor do I resemble it). Over time, such thoughts and ideas would fade away in my memory, but I believe that they do creep into many of my shots subconsciously. I think that's why those shots of common subjects have that different twist in them.

I loved all the photos especially Nose Maze and Invasion (after I found out what it was). There is a photo of Hillary Clinton under "Meet Obama's Team." What happened to her? She looks twenty years older today than she did yesterday.

Nice pics, folks.

congrats everyone! i like the dogs nose - very neat ... the cat picture is nice too - good composition, but one suggestion - the eyes should always been in focus, looks like the fur around the eye is whats in focus instead of the actual eye being sharp - but congrats to everyone!

Thanks for all your comments on my nose picture :) I am obsessed with taking pictures of my dog and it looks like it finally paid off! I'm really happy that so many people liked the shot as much as I do.

I don't mind getting beat by photos like this .... Amazing work all around, I would say. The cat one, Tilly, it's now a celebrity cat ...

The cat photo is GENIUS!

I so enjoy this column --- so many magnificent pictures! Sashym, could you tell us something about Pearl? Is that carbonated water on the petals, or is that what happens when you get a close-up of a dew-soaked rose?

What a talented photographer. She has a creative eye like her Mom, Dad and brother. Congratulations!

I absolutely love the Green Eye photo. How can I get a copy to frame?

Sally, write to me at raw@boston.com and I'll put you in touch with the photographer.

I enjoyed the photos very much, particularily the one of the drop above a seamed surface. Thanks! Eli