I voted for mortaldarkness' "real elvish rope" banner.
But I'm going to give my top three.
1.
mortaldarkness: As said, I voted for your 'real evlish rope' banner. It's VERY original. I don't think anyone would think of doing that because for one thing, it's an added scene in the EE, and not all fans have seen the EE's. It also implies the friendship/bond between Frodo and Sam (like many of the banners and it's basically the POINT of this contest). But I think that scene between Frodo and Sam was the last of the humorous scenes they have together until dark days were ahead of them. So it makes it special. Most people would try to make the blur on the rope near the top sharper because it's "grr" for the eyes, but I like how you didn't do that, or atleast to what I've seen. I feel like I'm actually looking down to see if Sam and Frodo area in one piece [who knows what these elves would do!]. I also liked the fact that you continued the rock background from the climbing picture to the upclose shot of Frodo and Sam.
I also like how from one side of the picture it changes color --- blue, green, lighter green, yellow, orange...
Overall rating: 9/10
2.
Ororuthiel: Your banner is VERY touching and it made my heart ache. The lyrics/words are a very nice add to the banner and I think made the feeling all the more gloomy (not that it's a bad thing). I think it described exactly the relationship between Frodo and Sam, of their bond throughout their year together destroying the ring. However, I do like the color scheme of purple and green --- but I think the contrast between the two colors is a bit too much. I think you could maybe make the purple more faded or have a lighter shade. Just constructiive criticism, feel free to ignore me, if you feel it's not appreciated. 7/10
3.
PippinTookLover: I spent the longest time looking at yours, and I think your banner would make a good head picture for a site. I love how Frodo and Sam are situated at each end with the pictures of each of them from the first movie to the last. I'm fascinated by the middle blending though. How the top picture faces Frodo and how the bottom faces Sam. I'm really impressed however at the hands grabbing each other. At the top being Frodo's hand pulling Sam up whilst the bottom is Sam pulling Frodo up. It's beautifullyl done!
Some advice: Try to blend in the pictures more, both in the edges and in color. The sudden change from blue-ish green to orangey red isn't the best. But I think you're great with symbolism and I think you'll get alot better as you keep making the banners
. Overall rating 6/10
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