I think your brother is mistaken on a number of grounds

1) It is your blog - tou should post what you want.

2) Any subject can make a great photo if taken well - photography should not always be of the pretty, the obvious and the accepted.

3) I rather like thes - especially the top one whih has a beautiful reflection.

Ian

Ok, The first picture is georgous! That reflection in the window is phenomial! And I don't get where your brother comes off saying that this is boring... oh well, to each his own right?

There is nothing wrong with shooting "out of the box" (although your nature photo's are by far my favorites) just don't get tooo obsessed with "out of the box" that you forget your signature... cuz lets face it, you have a nack for capturing nature at it's best. Keep up the good work!!!

(btw- the colors in these are perfect!)

Ryan, love the top one. The bottom one doesn't work for me, can't tell you why though.

You asked opinions: I like your work. I'd post only what I like and not worry about the subject matter or what others think, that's the only way that you expand yourself through self-critique (more important than comments, IMHO) and technique improvement. No matter what the picture looks like, every posted picture adds a feather to your education hat.

(Self-disclosure: if you view my archives, you'll see that I had the very same feelings as you at one point)

It is a worthy worry, though, when you yourself discover that your photography has a definite boundary outside of which you don't know how to operate. In my circumstance, even with decades of family photographs, I don't see my portraits as being very good or satisfying to my, as a photographer. I've resolved to work on this during the year and I've identified a number of problems and studied a number of other portrait photographers to understand just exactly what it is that I like and dislike.

You asked about photographic quality vs subject matter. The subject matter is everything, in my opinion. But the subject of photography has to include lighting, colors, texture, but that's not all. I have a very powerful picture of a confrontation between mother & son that tells a strong story, enough that you just sit and stare at it. But it's technically a very bad picture. Still one of the best that I have. Then, I have some technically good pictures that I simply love, but they most certainly aren't great. View my capitol steps picture reposted a few days ago to see what I mean on this. It's a complex subject, similar to politics. What's the difference between goodness and greatness? Sometimes difficult to be both.

Sorry for the rambling, but you said your Sunday traffic was light. (smile).

hi ryan, i can understand where you're coming from. i think the most amazing thing about photography is the infinite number of ways one can view and project a subject. i think it's up to oneself to go and explore them and expand horizons. look, you've inspired someone as anti-nature as me to start shooting macros of plants! so yes, step out of the box but do what pleases you and don't worry about others.

the top picture is prety good. i like the rich tones and the reflection.

I Like both of the Pictures, but I think the top one is the best. Keep up the good work.

Your site has top quality photos and varied subjects. I don't find anything boring about. It's indeed one of my faves. The top picture in this series is captivating, with that beautiful reflections, the rough texture of the wall and the interaction between warm and cold tones.

Great reflection of the sky in the window.

I think your brother is blind missing the point, and, as far as I am concerned, there are never enough nature shots, of which, out there in a sea of blogs, yours are some of the best.

You have the quality and as for subject matter? It's what moves us at that moment of clicking the button that counts.