An abstract mandala with the fundamental circular form surrounding a four-gate interior, all with an intense mystical glow reflecting the underlying spirituality of the mandala -- an outstanding interpretation.

It is a beautiful pattern, but its squareness seems to be at odds with the contest's explanation that "[t]he meaning of mandala comes from Sanskrit meaning 'circle.'" The center form does have a circular feel, but ultimately it's not round. Nevertheless, there is a strong four-gate aspect that Wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandala ) identifies as integral to the basic form. So bottom line, I think this could be the cool center of a true mandala.

While I agree with ramsesje that this does not match the example tutorials, I nevertheless believe this does conform to the contest's simple directive to create a little planet with no constraint as to the means for achieving that. (Tangentially, being the prince of such an arid planet is not very appealing.)

Cool overall. However, the interior spiral's perspective doesn't quite match my expectation of a planet being spherical. (The unbelievably high smokestacks in Source 1 are especially problematic.) And moon-as-disco-ball doesn't really work for me, but it is an interesting idea (that admittedly works fairly well in low-res).

Cool concept. Ignoring the theme-conformance issue, I think this would be more compelling if the sphere opening were tilted downward in the front to conform with the perspective of the skyscrapers inside. It also seems odd that there are snowflakes (apparently cleverly created from a star-field source which results in a magical charm) in front of the clouds and the two far spheres but not in front of the near sphere. (Using the term 'sphere' is perhaps a bit imprecise as closing the lids on the bottoms would appear to yield a shape leaning toward ovoid.) [What is the slash thing in the top center?]

Good choice for the theme. The shadows look more like outer glows and don't anchor the balls to the background, however. I think the intermediate cue ball should be fainter, but probably not to the same degree as the intermediate orange ball since the cue ball is changing direction.

Very creative. A target wearing a hat diminishes the hair/hare pun, however, while a target wearing a dress would add a 'miss' pun.

I like that this is not a totally symmetrical/mirror image entry. Even if this is not meant to be photorealistic, I do feel that where the lower part of the mask shows through the lace should be stronger.

Very cool and creative. While admittedly over-grand for a today's Fords, your hood ornament merely replaces another equally ornate one from the 1930's in your source image. As locxoul noted, you retained the source shadow which included an under-belly opening that your replacement ornament doesn't have/fills in. The reflection is an intriguing addition since your source doesn't have one. It should probably be more subtle but more problematic is that its perspective is more like a shadow than a reflection.

Creative and clever use of her trailing arm, plus her luggage neatly hides the fact that she is walking. The repositioned handbag is appropriate given that she has halted her forward movement, but a hint of shadow on her pant leg (and possibly coattail) might seem more realistic.

Interesting, but I feel more tire shadow on the pavement is needed to make it seem more grounded.

Fun. However, the white on the skull makes it really pop out and overpower the text which I think should really be the focus. I would replace the white with the pumpkin's color and maybe replace the stroke around the text with a brighter (and possibly thicker) color.

I appreciate the desire to improve upon the rules (like allowing a multi-sentence quote), but the whole point is to be creative within the constraints presented. [The 'Mixed Manipulations' contests are an opportunity for being unconstrained.]

Very fun font, and while I'm not sure if it represents the message, I nevertheless do think a horizon line with a darker bottom half reflecting the message of the upper half would be more understandable.

Cool from a distance, but a precise right angle between "DESIGN" and "typogragphy" might be in order. Additionally, the paragraph exceeds the one-sentence limitaition of the contest besides being wholly unrelated to the notion of 'design typograhphy.'

The key is very creative. I confess I don't get the 'success' hand-grenade thingy, however. But nevertheless it seems to me that "co-operation" is the focal word of the message but yet not the focus of the image.

Very entertaining. Repeating "Have a Nice Day " on the image apart from on the hand seems unnecessary when that's the title. Some shadow between the forefinger and the middle finger would seem to be appropriate. Having the text curve like it were actually on the hand might be even more compelling.

I really like this. But your SBS doesn't provide any support to your assertion that you created the 'life line' from double W's. [BTW a third-person singular subject {he, she, it/'apple'} almost always requires a present-tense verb that ends in 'S' {the opposite of plural nouns!}, so it should really be 'keeps.']

Fun idea. Is this an expression in some particular culture? (I personally am not familiar with this saying.) Why are some edge bricks blank while others are incomplete text? Why does the highlighting of the central brick have fuzzy rather than crisp edges?

Kind of cool. I think CMYK46 is too restrained in his comment; the image's message would seem to suggest that the whole of "Black & White" should be a rainbow or something. In any event, the 'C' needs to cast a shadow on the '&.' And the totality raises the issue as to whether an entry needs to be legible absent the title (which this is not).

The bubbles are cool (although might not the clear portions distort the background somewhat?) and the title is fun, but I admit I don't see the relationship between them.

Some very cool stuff here. I think there needs to be a crisper edge between the sphere and the back wall as they are apparently not connected as evidenced by the shadow and the fully lit wall behind the model. The lighting on the model in the nook should be more shadowy (i.e., match the model's shadow to the sphere's if you don't want to follow CMYK46's suggestion to match the sphere's shadow to the model's, although that would probably be easier [plus possibly more dramatic and might allow for deleting the floor altogether]). Her long tresses could not hang straight down like that if her head were in the center of the nook.

I don't see how this conforms to the instructions to "take ONE sentence" [emphasis added].

Cool, but I wish the main 'PXLEYES' stood out more dramatically as shiny steel.

Creative idea. Love the date with its multiple layers and heights. I don't get the 'M' birds, however. (Are [black]birds a good luck symbol at New Year's in some cultures?] I wonder if the sun rays would work better with the text if each ray matched up with a different word.

Like it, but I don't see how it conforms to the instructions to "take ONE sentence" [emphasis added].

Like it, but I don't see how it conforms to the instructions to "take ONE sentence" [emphasis added].

Like it, but I don't see how it conforms to the instructions to "take ONE sentence" [emphasis added].

Like it, but I don't see how it conforms to the instructions to "take ONE sentence" [emphasis added].

Very charming image enhanced by the evocative lighting. The perforated heart should cast a perforated shadow, however. It also seems to me that the middle letter should cast as strong a shadow onto the (light-colored) right-side letter as the right-side letter casts onto the (darker) wall. The wall/floor joint could be better defined IMO. I would expect the wall boards to cast a dark, skinny shadow onto the floor boards going under the wall. (Although it's an artistic choice, I personally think replacing the floor with a bureau top would make more sense.)

Around, not merely in-front-of, light effects would be so much more compelling. And I'm not sure reticence/fear is a goddess quality.

Inspired concept with great execution! [Why didn't I think of that!?! ] Fine-tuning consideration: darken the hair.

Very cool overall with awesome metallic surfaces. BUT Nose isn't centered between the eyes. Nose is blurry while lips are crisp. Dangling earing would benefit from sharper edges [more of a low-res issue]. Smallest headdress lamp doesn't cast any shadow (or any shine if were lit) on the mask. [BTW why not make all the lamps lit/brighter for added drama?] Forehead plume thingy doesn't cast any shadow on the forehead. Ditto for eyelashes. Our-left cheek decorations seem flat, not 3D-curved, and the three protuberances terminating in hearts aren't casting any shadows.

Clever before-and-after ("Wheel of Fortune" category) gene-splicing idea. Legality of using the Patty Duke source is dubious, however. The curvature of the text on the TP roll doesn't seem to quite match the roll itself. But I don't get the overall concept: What does the headline have to do with TP? What does the subtitle mean? Why is she imagining a roll of TP surrounded by a brown background square?

Mildly amusing, but I don't think any human nose other than the bridge between the eyes should be visible, i.e., the jackass snout should be moved up to just under the eyes.

The gene splicing is well-done although perhaps a bit simplistic (e.g., just the mouth?). Doing a supermarket-tabloid cover as a way to include multiple gene splices (thumbs up for twins!) while also distinguishing your entry from the typical just-a-portrait approach is very creative. Unfortunately, the fonts [avoid subtle serifs] and layout [including bland gray background with simple black or white text, bar code not in white box for high contrast, and odd black border] are all wrong for grabbing shoppers' attentions in the check-out line (plus the concept is perhaps an overly-ambitious undertaking when English is apparently not your native language — but that could be easily overlooked if there were much less text and it were presented as more-eye-catching headlines).

Very nice, but I would reduce the asymmetry of the cheeks and chin.

Interesting, but would be more so with an SBS which might help explain the lighting on his chest. I personally don't get the point of the stone fence and would just delete it. I think the title overdescribes the image IMO. (I could see an angel as a soldier of God, but as a soldier of abstract 'faith' seems too much to me.)

Nice idea, but with the light coming from the back, the side of the lion we see needs more shading (consistent with its shadow on the ground).

Colorful is joyful, but otherwise this seems merely like a random compilation. In addition to the previous comments, I think she needs some more shadow to ground her to the leaf-covered pathway (a nice reference to autumn).

Moody. The bright light is in the background yet the listing ship is lit from the front; I would think the ship would be more of a silhouette like the peaks. There seems to be a gradient overlay over everything. While that works well on the background, the green crow's nests on the ship look odd. I think the ship should be treated separately. The bottom edge of the ship is too strong to convey the notion it is floating on/sinking into the foggy sea. Some ship ground shadows are also warranted.

Orb extraction looks great. Front dangling 'stars' need to cast some shadow on the back dangling 'stars.' Different shades of gray on the hanging cords would make them seem to be on different planes.

Cool idea. I'm not convinced that the wings are tilted up quite as much as the central pod, however. The lighting on the Guardian does not seem to match that on the planet and moon. Having a Guardian wing overlap the planet would create a greater feelng of depth.

...and a lit light would be much more compelling.

Very creative and interesting. Nevertheless, I confess I don't get how the title relates to the image. And I don't see how the top half of the image relates to the bottom half (which also has a totally different perspective).

Clever and amusing. The planets need more shading to appear less flat and more like 'marbles' in the box. The back half of Saturn's rings should be inside the box bottom. (I like the slits in the box cover for the front half of the rings.) The labeling on the cover side is extremely bland [euphemism for 'boring']. Something shorter like "The Planets in a Box" spread across the entire front in colored, kid-friendly type would be more appealing.

Symmetry is indeed the hallmark of very formal structures as that contributes to their dignity. Whole cities are rarely that rigid, however (and certainly not true of the Oz in the now-classic movie "The Wizard of Oz," for example). Nevertheless, you are completely free to express your own artistic vision just as I'm free to yawn. Good luck!

Interesting, but teeth edges are blurry with the lower chocolate teeth seeming to defy gravity. Also, the humans being eaten are a bit hard to discern -- and in any event that all seems unlikely given the background.

Cute, but not exactly on theme.

Very appealing concept. BUT Perfect symmetry is kind of boring. Looks more like some sort of futuristic, green-tinged silver tea set on a tray than a city IMO. I do like how the background provides a sense of place without distracting from the focus of the image. The trees-under-the-dome element is my favorite part, but I'm not sure what's causing the flare.