Theme: Cowboy Up!

[Jackie Schuknecht]

Took this in South America two years ago. The cowboys there are called gauchos, and they work on the estancias which are huge ranches. Although this was just a young teenage boy, his riding abilities were incredible.
Put it through DAP Pastels.
Wasn't sure whether to add a BG or not.
Comments Appreciated!

[Mark Fuge]

Hi Jackie,

Nice image.

I would suggest you cleanup the BG, in the areas noted, as you ommitted a formal BG.

Due to the lack of BG, I would also crop it tighter to minimize the white area.

I also added a little contrast, as it seems a little flat to me. Amount of contrast would be up to you.

Your image, your vision.

[denise ippolito]

Jackie, Good suggestions by Mark. I like the pastel look to this and it is screaming Cowboy!!! Nice job with this image!!

[Dave Mills]

Hi Jackie, Agree there are some good suggestions by Mark but I would only crop about half way down from the top.

[John Ippolito]

Jackie, I like the illustrated feel with the texture you added. It feels like a hybrid photograph/sketch. I agree with Dave about the crop about halfway above the head. The cloud bits would work even better if there were more added. They give dimension for me. A fine image!

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

Well done Jackie. Great image. Love those gauchos! :)

[Cindy Cone]

Great theme image, Jackie. I think the effects you used work really well. I would only crop a little from the top.

[Cheryl Slechta]

Jackie, I love the cowboy look and the pastel work you did to it. I agree about a little off the top.

____________
Cheryl

[Jackie Schuknecht]

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. I cropped a little and I like it better. I left the clouds in and the way they were, couldn't seem to adjust them anyway that I liked.