The face is too blurry, while the tattoo is razor sharp. Also, the chin area looks weird, like it has a triangular coffee stain on it.

congratulations...

Congrats for your second place, Loyd!

Does it work for the self critical as well

Congratulations!

Cool design, i like those tuts.
I know the message is adressed to people like me, cause i (too) have the long annoying improvement comments, lol. I don't mind.

Cool. Thanks for the info on the flags. We're all familiar with the "Stars and Bars," but it's nice to get educated about the others. Good luck

Great thinking and cool work author...flag look a bit unrealistic...everything else is very nice...gl

great entry, the water reflection are very good,

They think they may have found the remains of the Hunley, based on reports of lookouts on other ships in the blockade when they sank the Housatonic. When they were finished, they were supposed to signal shore with some lights, and the lookouts reported seeing some unknown lights and where they were, so modern researchers started looking around there and think they may have found it. Might not be in any condition to be raised, though.

Historic trivia fact for the day. This was the first SUCCESSFUL submarine attack. But a sub was used in the Revolutionary war too, it just didn't get anything done.

Great choice of subject, author! Good job! (although, is that flag accurate if it's a confederate boat?)

That's quite a story. Very nice work, especially the rivet detail and the rudder fins and prop.

Look! It's Moe, Larry & Curly!

hahahahahaha....high resolution is a must...ultimate humor and great details...well done author

Fabulous design, a lot of very good work here, must see hi-res, lots of good details, especially the crest. Love the added shells and smoke.
Do ya think the perps 'll get it, SlushMan?

BEST WHEN VIEWED IN HIGH RES... really is a Unique vision

Really nice work, author, all those adjustments made for a very effective change. I have been on those very beaches, and this looks incredibly realistic. Love moonbaths!

Sigh, what I would do to see this type of lighting in REAL LIFE.. with so much city light it's hard to find (though it is kind of cool when Turtle season is happening down here in Florida they shut off all the beach lights and just let the moon be on it's own, and all the little teenagers guarding sections of beach, it's a hoot (good luck author, nice work)

very pretty

Very very nice work author...mood is great...this look like maybe hour before sunrise with heavy rain clouds...well done

Fantastic work author...well done

cmyk1234142 bla bla bla is right! not often, but this time! needs shadow work!

cool space work...gl author

Really precise work!

very cute

Nice work! I would have loved to see more detail in the leafs, but overall I think you did a stunning job.. Great work author and GL!

Very effective, great mood! The clouds almost seem to move.

Just trying to help, not to criticize or anything, it's a good attempt.

The tutorial had a highlighted simple planet to make contrast with the dark moon, and a saturated sky (meaning very blue, even if space is black) to make contrast with the gray exploding moon.
Even if this was not explained in the tutorial ( i can only guess, i don't know) - these tricks create the point of interest, the equilibrium of the image, so that the exploded moon really stands up.
In many tuts the authors don't explain this stuff, either cause they think it's obvious and well known, either cause it's in their blood and don't realize when they're doing it. But you should pay attention to these details - you can't really learn skills from others, but you can steal them ..

The pot looks gorgeous, well done
-there are some masking problems where the stem meets the earth.
- you could have used a lower saturation for the background to make it a bit more neutral.
- dodge/burn tools should have been on a lower oppacity for less contrast on the leaves and petals.
People use clipping layers of black& white with lower opacity to make shades & lights, cause it's difficult to redo the dodge/burn, but you can always erase & adjust a clipping layer.
It's a good start, anyways.

Classical approach Proper use of all those Ps adjustment tools !!! Step 4 is a must, who needs strong highlights at night

Lovely work and I agree ... looks like you could reach out and touch it!

it looks so real!! great job!!

will you buy me a premium membership? =D

Sorry, but the light source in the original pic is way up on the right.

Love the change ... I liked it but like it even more now ... very nice change! Love the people out Moonbathing ... maybe they are all waiting for an eclipse!

Light source is from upper right. Shadows match that source, not the one you've made.

Nice change ... I like the way the one boat is lit by the moon. I think there would be some light on the water (especially where the wave is peaking/hitting the beach ... it could even be used to draw the eye into the image). Just a thought!

Nice job, author. Everything looks a bit fuzzy or soft.

Nice!

The flowerpot looks very realistic! Good job.

i wasnt sure about the image being legal or not. thanks for the clarification everyone. it is a fantastic image. and still i must say is very unfair for everyone else who wish's to learn how to do such a thing. but as the rules do say yes your results are very on par.

nicely done

That Image of the Day on the NASA site has been a bookmark of mine for a long time, Dragoncide, those images ARE ok to use on this site, or for non-commercial purposes, as MossyB states. As far as this particular tut, yes, it's frustrating if you're not a member, but the images and video that they DO show should be enough for an artist to come up with something like they show. Author, you've done a very commendable job here, looks good to me! SBS is well done also.

NASA images are .gov, so they are considered public domain, I believe...
From the NASA website:
"NASA still images; audio files; video; and computer files used in the rendition of 3-dimensional models, such as texture maps and polygon data in any format, generally are not copyrighted. You may use NASA imagery, video, audio, and data files used for the rendition of 3-dimensional models for educational or informational purposes, including photo collections, textbooks, public exhibits, computer graphical simulations and Internet Web pages. This general permission extends to personal Web pages.

This general permission does not extend to use of the NASA insignia logo (the blue "meatball" insignia), the retired NASA logotype (the red "worm" logo) and the NASA seal. These images may not be used by persons who are not NASA employees or on products (including Web pages) that are not NASA-sponsored.

NASA should be acknowledged as the source of the material except in cases of advertising. See NASA Advertising Guidelines."

But I agree, that a "premier" tutorial that can't be publicly seen shouldn't be allowed...Just like tutorials in a book can't be used, because those without the book can't see the tutorial...

Without the tutorial to compare to, it looks like your exploding moon is wonky.

hmmm, not sure if the photos from NASA are according to the rules. did you get permission from NASA? also, as far as i remember. unless rules were changed. no premium images and such, can be used. i could be wrong on that 2nd one.

Congrats!

Congrats!!

Congrats for 3rd

Nice work, I like the reflection of the beacon's light through the grass.

This looks good, I would comment on the light & it's brightness, but that's your personal choice.

very very nice work author...fantastic work on water surface...best of luck