Well you certainly got a starburst and flare! Were you "fishing," i.e., all set up with camera at the sun and waiting for someone interesting to walk by?

I like the image but find myself wanting to see "a little more and a little less." For me, the stars of the image are: (1) the sun and its starburst, (2) the woman in the foreground, (3) the building behind her and (4) the background/context of the busy city. Might not have been possible, but I kind of want to see the woman's body, right down to her shoes on the sidewalk and would also like to see the building behind her all the way to the top. The image would probably be more striking if the man in the foreground wasn't there and we just had the single figure in the foreground strolling towards the sun. But of course we can't control who walks down the street and when - just brainstorming about what might have made a very nice image a little stronger.   Posted: 10/07/2025 08:16:49

I keep trying to get starbursts, but so far they've been starbusts. Not sure I'd want bursts and flares together.   Posted: 10/07/2025 15:05:36

Hi Muthoni, while I can see your aim was to capture the sunburst/ flare, I am wondering what the human story is. I really like this as a street image, with the randomness of the people and the time of day (sunburst) but as a HI image the focus of the story needs to be about the person/s, in an unusual, interactive or emotional situation. When we are working from a PJ perspective, its about thinking differently starting with 'what is the story here', rather than thinking 'there is a great starburst I need to capture'. I do like that you have found the starburst, but I'm not sure as a HI image this would do well in competition.   Posted: 10/08/2025 06:24:40