Wow, surprised to see this one finished squarely on 5. I didn't vote in the challenge but this one caught my eye. As some commentators mentioned, the inclusion of the blue sweatshirt probably hurt you in the score department. It would probably have been less of an issue if Riley's eyes were blue. I love the tilt in his head and the expression is very genuine.
It's interesting to compare yours to  timfythetoo's ribbon winner. They are not disimilar, his is just more clearly overexposed across the frame. Your overexposure is spread equally across his face(flat lighting) whereas his shot shows a lighting ratio from side to side. This gives his girl's face more depth.
Sorry to compare yours to his but I think they are so similar that a comparison is helpful in picking out the reasons that his was well-received by the voters.
Keep shooting! Mark |
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