I really love the composition and clarity of this image too - but the tone makes it feel quite moody and scary in a way. Complete contrast to the young girl at the front completely unaware of the dark sky looming behind her :)

Wow. Very ominous elements. I love it when it appears a subject is ignoring its environment in favor of intense focus on their own thoughts. In her own world again. The portraits are great. This might be one of my new favorites here.

Always impressed with your work. I love the shot, but the depth of focus seems to be more on the bucket / background than on the subject. The clarity is amazing.

Very clear and sharp, lovely composition and I do like the way the stairs line up with the bucket which seems to keep catching my eye. Wonderfully coloured as well, is it a duotone image?

Hope the camera didn't get too wet.

The tonality here is gorgeous. There's something almost ominous about the clouds building up behind her and the building ... I am getting images in my mind of the hotel in "The Shining."

Well done.

Definitely a 'lost in her own world' feel, yes.

I can't help but think it's the opening shot to some movie and, any minute now, we're gonna find ourselves in that building in the background at the start of the story of how she ended up here, alone on the beach.

Maybe I just watch too many movies.

A very striking image Dave, the tones are excellent. I think the bucket may be a bit distracting for me though, my eyes always seem to be drawn away from the girl towards it, im not quite sure why. I still love this pic though, your family photo album when your kids are older will be something to be truly proud of.

Rho's so beautiful, Dave -- and those eyelashes! This shot is my favorite so far of the two, everything about it. And I know what you mean about it being 'your style' -- simply beautiful work. How is Libby feeling? Please send her a virtual hug for me :)

Evokes the feeling of "attack of the 50 foot woman," but in a more serious and tragic way. It's interesting how the treatment has turned a potentially cheery blue patch of sky into an ominous presence.

Très jolie, on dirait que c'est une petite sorcière, mettant la main dans l'eau, qui produit les nuages orageux derrière...

Très réussie et la composition est excellente.

Fantastic picture with the 3D feel to it.

While I LOVED yesterdays shot, I LOVE this one for different reasons that i can't articulate right now. I would love to see this printed very large.

Very nice capture Dave! Did you use any type of sun reflector on her for this shot?

Superb

I agree with the comments here, the dark skies looming above her seem frightening and yet beautiful. The clarity is perfect. I have the same equipment as you, I just need to practice more and learn the exposure settings. You provide great inspiration, thank you. I'd also be interested to know your method of conversion to B&W.

The photo has a rather different feel to yesterdays. Having your daughter, seemingly alone, with her back to the world looming large behind, does create a slight sense of tension - heightened by the fact she's so concentrated on the watery ripples. Intriguing.

I feel like I'm really getting to know your daughters! This is a lovely picture, by the way.

Thanks everyone.

Jon: I've posted a new version since your comment that sharpens the foreground a little. I do think that you're right though, it is a little soft.

myla: will do :-)

kim: I converted this to black and while using the channel mixer to extract the red channel then toned it with the Curves tool (boosting the midtones of the red and green channels, the former by about twice as much as the latter, and decreasing the midtones for the blue channel.

excellent contrast, and composition. like what you did with the sky too.

Excellent shot dave! I'm a fan of your daughters!

the lighting on her is superb
the metering/post processing on the skies to make them darker is an wonderful contrast
the sharpness on her is great too

However,
the background is too sharp for me
i would love to see her on the left of the picture... just a gut feel.

Anyway, u can go on forever about how u tone ur pictures using the curves but somehow the effect on our computers can hardly mimick that of yours! haha I love it!

Hi, I'm brand-new to your site. I've clicked 'previous' a few times and am just in awe of your photographs. What a remarkable gift you have! Thank you for sharing it with us. I'm sure I'll be back-- I feel like I can learn a lot from seeing your photos. :)

Amazing clarity!

hey dave,

Hi, I'm new to your site...your photos are great! I agree to to time.com for voting your site one of the coolest!

I'm drawn to your images that feel unsettling. This one makes me think - "Something wicked this way comes.." The child plays oblivious to the darkness gathering behind her. This is very evocative.

wow!!

the b/w image makes the child so much closer to us. the background just seems to go off far behind!

this picture is so amazingly clear... and the texture of the clouds and the water is amazing. very tangible. i have been checking out your pics for a couple weeks now; i find this one to be the most striking yet. i wish i could take pictures like this.

I agree with nogger -- this feels like the opening shot to a movie. (Of course, I just finished watching Batman Begins, so I've got that kind of creepy drama on the brain). I just *know* that something sinister is going on in that creepy old building, some kind of bizarre science experiment, and in any moment the subject of that experiment (invariably some kind of mutated beast) is going to break loose and escape through the front door, cross the street, run down the steps, lunge up behind the unsuspecting girl, and devour her whole. Okay, yeah, I know it's your daughter... sorry for the morbid picture. What can I say? I'm a product of Hollywood. But kudos to you for arranging a beautiful and engaging image like that, with enough emotional appeal and mystery to cause me to create such an elaborate backstory! Few photographers can inspire that in me. Great great GREAT job, and I can't wait to see tomorrow's pic!

Wow,it's really an amazing clarity.I love it.However,it's somewhat moody,maybe a little scary.

I love the clarity of this shot.

I like this one more than yesterday's one. This image is really nice. The depth the building in the background is giving to this image is just amazing. I'd like to see this image in colour as well. I personally prefer colour images of kids as the B&W makes the image looks cold, if you know what I mean.

I didn't know that they made china dolls that look so realistic. What's that film about the Sixty foot woman? This is the child. Lovely shot.

Is it only me or is there a bias towards Rho on your blog ;)

Fantastic B&W. I didn't think yesterday's shot could be topped, until today. Amazing.

tobias: yes, there is a bias towards pictures of Rhowan. I'm not sure why, but I find her much easier to photograph than the others.

i imagine its easier to photograph rhowan as she is younger and isn't so aware of her surroundings and you taking the shot.

i love this.

mat: her age is part of it but Harmony is younger and I find her much more difficult to photograph. I guess Rho is more photogenic (whatever that means).

B&W Photography is the best.. There's always an 'extra tinge' of beauty in it.. This photo is great... creates much more impact than y.day's... :-)

Wow: what a beautiful light, that's almost uncredible... I love this shot !

really scary. belongs on the cover of a sci-fi novel.

Hey, I don't think this is scary or too moody at all...
I think I even like it more than yesterday's.

Good work (as always).

Josh: no, I don't think it's scary either. What I try and do with my photographs of our children is portray them as something more that just children. It's relatively easy to point the camera down at them and portray them through the eyes of an adult, but what I'm trying to do is show them in their own world – where they have far more power and presence.

WOW...says me and the two kidlings standing over my shoulder. Awesome photo. We bow to you, we three budding photographers :)

brilliant

I don't know... The first one was a full-colored scene that I think joined very good withnthe action. This one is very well-composed, not so fun but yet impressive, mostly because of the background, very "urban", and the girl in the sand. Can't make a choice. They're too different as good in their own way.

Wow. One of the best photos of a kid I've ever seen!

I love your photographs. They are always stunning. And always so clear. I love the way her eyelashes and lips look so clear, it goes so well with the water below her. Wonderful.

I love the contrast between your daughter and the buildings behind her. Really magnificent!!! She's like an angel taking a break to play in the sand! Really wonderful!!!

You might try burning in the upper right hand corner - it's a bit too hot. The tone of the clouds on the left of the girl don't match the tone on the right in certain locations when they should match.

Best of the bunch --- I'll shoot you an email with more thoughts....

This image is so gorgeous. Wow. I'm really at awe.

i love this shot...i don't no how you make this kind of shots...

This shot is amazing. The way the child has her finger in the sand - it just shows childhood innocence and imagination. The way the entire shot is composed is brilliant

I just wanted to say that i have been an avid fan of yours for nearly a year, and I saw this photo when you originally posted it - you are amazing!!

Even through all the other photos, this one has stuck with me through all these months. It really "speaks" to me for some reason.

everything about this shot works for me. lovely.