I love her boots! :o))

dramatic with that sword.. Very special image !

Great posing and character in this well done scene! :o)

Very nice!

~Very beautifully done!~

Xcellent detailed portrait! Great ambiance lighting!

Wonderful image! I think her eyes need just a bit of highlights. Wonderful textures and posing here - the DOF really bring the focus on her and give a sense of excitement. Really nice work!

wonderful image!! fabulous render!

Beautiful character, the textures are amazing ! Love the pose and her expression !

Great pose and beautiful testures!

Superb render and lighting.

Fantastic character and look, I like the mood, good scene, lovely creation, well done!!!

beautiful and wonderfully done character, great pose and PoV, excellent

Very good light and texture.

Fantastic realization, very expressive pose and character.....!!!!

A really great looking character and outfit! Very nice work!

cool character and super render!

Excellent work fantastic DOF....well done !

Great character and pose. I'm thinking that bright white spot in the eyes is an artifact?

The white spots on her eyes aren't render artefacts as such, more of a highlight by-product of the lighting set I was using. Didn't really bother me when I finished the pic but it is starting to now :(

WOW!!!!....5+++

This is so good, it's astonishing. The DOF is perfect, and the pose looks quite believable and natural. The costume, props, and background all work together beautifully. The textures and lighting setup are superb. This is an instant fave! Only two things keep this image from being perfect. The first is the aforementioned white highlights in her eyes. The second is her left hand. When wielding a saber, she should either have her left hand back and out of the way, or she should be holding a "main gauche" (small parrying blade) in that hand. As I said, two small points for an otherwise outstanding image.

Thanks everyone for your comments. :) Thank you RJS for your excellent feedback, much appreciated. However I will agree to slightly disagree with your second point regarding the off-hand. Technically the sword is supposed to be a rapier, however that definition is off a bit due to the retention of blade width and lack of length common with later period renaisance rapiers. I would class this sword in the transitional period between battle sword and rapier as the role of the sword changed. Probably more of a back sword I'd say. I've done medieval re-enactment for many years fighting with different types and combinations of weapons. I always preferred to fight with my left hand extended giving me more time and reach to fend off an an attack or counter with an attack of my own. Keeping it held back actually is a disadvantage as it allows your opponents weapon to get closer to you than with the hand extended. Of course this is all subjective and later styles of fencing, rapier, small sword and sabre techniques all held the hand back due to their more upright stance and reliance on footwork to void or slip the body out of harms way - and of course which country, master, school you learned from. When using a rapier I personally liked the rapier and cloak combination. Good for sneaky stuff :)