This meets the challenge very well. I can "feel" the texture of the brick. Very well done. That being said, a bit deeper DOF would have made it even better IMO. Good luck.
I think I would like to see this shot with a little more color - you know, bring out the reds and browns. As it is, it looks a bit dull. However, I really like the angle, and you showed the texture nicely.
nice texture, but i'm not so sure that i like the shallow DOF here.. and i think i would prefer more 'punch' that could be added if you saturated the colors a bit more.