All images copyright by the individual photographers

	Fountain by Maria Dunaevsky The immediate impact to me in this creative print is threefold. Certainly one should admire the lovely color palette, particularly highlighting the reds and pinks from the powerful reflections, the back pack over the girl’s shoulders, all the way to the facial colors of the image on the brick wall. With a fountain erupting behind the apparent brick facade, there is a mystery quotient  here as to whether the face detail on the wall is painted or as a result of a projection from an unknown source. What is striking to me is that this exquisite image really captures 3 stages of life,all represented here by females. Firstly, the young children are joyfully playing in the water and fountain  display. In the center the young teenager is standing barefooted in the water, apparently watching over the children’s safety, or may be just there as a bystander. Here she is transfixed by the image on the wall, initially being intrigued by what she is looking at, and then puzzling at the somewhat cynical look on the lady’s face. Surely this is an adult face questioning the future of all who may stop long enough to try and analyze the expression. Certainly this young girl has reason to doubt what the future may hold for her A fascinating image, aesthetically seen and recorded.
	Red Tail Hawk by Jill Frier This is a truly spectacular close-up of a majestic bird of prey. The superb lighting impressively delineates the astonishing detail and pattern of the hawk’s outstretched wings, such features rarely seen or recorded so dramatically. The color palette is equally awesome, highlighted by the gorgeous red tail feathers which give this magnificent bird its imposing name. Not only does the magical lighting allow one to experience and almost feel the intricate feather structures, it also sweeps one’s eyes remarkably from the tail all the way to the head and curved beak, creatively illustrating one of nature’s imperial and most beautiful raptors.
	Climbing by Timothy J. Fuss   This is a delightfully refreshing image of a delicate spray of pink leaves, possibly bougainvillea, on a slender stem displayed behind what looks like a white curtain suspended across a window frame. The gently curving assembly is deliberately recorded out of sharp focus, to give the charming and delectable effect of an impressionistic painting. The soft pastel colors radiate peace and tranquility against the curtain and light blue sky beyond. It is intriguing that the delicate arcs of the branch and curtain complement each other wonderfully, especially against the bold vertical window elements. The only mystery that remains to be answered is as to why the artist detailed a very small leaf detail peeping above the curtain. This part of the plant is in sharp focus, and is obviously deliberately shown as such. Whether one likes this feature or not, the overall image is just beautiful and artistically seen and recorded.
	Sunny Ward by Nan Guzauski Nancy always has a powerful and unique way of capturing the sadness, despair and poignancy in her images of abandoned mental and health institutions. Here in the corner of a large room, is a stark setting of patient’s beds pushed tightly together, under the glare of curtainless windows, and a debris-filled floor, where water from a burst pipe or open window is relentlessly making its presence felt. It has been countless years since these beds were occupied, now they are just locked together, probably waiting the wrecker’s ball to wipe away all memories of this needed facility. Although one could write paragraphs on what may have transpired here long ago, one should turn to the brilliant light that is coming in through these once impressive tall windows. Although we are sadly illuminating the past, one should use this opportunity to look into the future. It may not be appropriate to imagine if any of the patients housed here would still be with us, though one certainly would hope that some are. Instead, one should think positively that these institutions have been replaced by modern facilities that really do meet the challenges of health and rehabilitation of people who are mentally challenged.
	Floating Village by Joyce Pearson In bright sunlight, this enchanting image would lose most of its impact,  but in the fog and misty surroundings, this oriental setting takes on a mystical aura of its own. There is a peacefulness and tranquility that is just awesome, making the viewer want to take on a magical mystery tour to learn more about the people and their way of life on this waterway. I am sure that life in this small village is by no means simple, and it requires long hours of hard work to achieve the small rewards that they richly deserve. One is fascinated to learn how this apparent isolation from the mainland is a forced situation or one handed down from generations. This life may be all that they have experienced, and they are probably happy if that is the case. The mystery of how these enterprising people exist is moving and inspiring , let us hope that one is experiencing a happy outcome, movingly and artistically captured by the artist.
	Waves of Life Elena Rey-Kautz This is a spectacular  view of what is probably part of a geyser complex in Yellowstone, where eons of time have left a highly colorful and detailed surface landscape that is simply breathtaking. The immediate foreground is particularly impressive, where the rusty brown and yellow ochres highlight magical striations that lead dramatically to a gently curving interface, before continuing as more regular fissures into the predominantly blue lake beyond. Of particular note is that the flowing curved barrier is almost mirrored in the pedestrian walkway near the top of the frame, a passage highlighted by the steam and water vapor emanating from a distant geyser. One could easily crop away the human interference at the top, to leave a magical “scape” below that would open up many possibilities as to what one is looking at. An example could be an aerial view from say a satellite, of a large complex river estuary, where pollution in particular from a myriad of small rivers eventually reaches the ocean beyond. This print as it stands has been creatively and brilliantly captured by the artist, and it is one of my favorite images in this outstanding exhibition.
Peter Marr	We are very grateful to Peter for his thorough review and selection for Peter's Picks. Peter was born in England in 1935 and came to live in the United States in 1968. He worked for the Eastman Kodak Company for 34 years, retiring in 1998. During his employment and continuing into retirement, he has been an enthusiastic photographer. His photography has won him numerous awards throughout Kodak and in International Salons, including 5 George Eastman Medals, which is the top honor awarded to the most outstanding picture in the Annual Kodak International Salon. He has served as a judge in both local and international photographic competitions for the past 20 years, and is a Past president of the Kodak Camera Club and past chairman of many of the Kodak Camera Club organizations. In the past five years or so, he has devoted his photographic skills and interest into nature photography, notably bird photography. His bird photography has been the subject of several one-person exhibits, the most recent being at Ding Darling NWR, in Sanibel, Florida, The Roger Tory Peterson Institute in Jamestown, New York, and at the Webster Public Library in Webster, NY.