Your opinion counts

I made these three photos yesterday evening. They are all stitched from four vertical frames and offer enough native resolution to be printed bigger than my printer can handle. I talk a little bit about their making in my most recent web journal entry, but what I'd like to do here is solicit your comment about preferences. I have my own favorite, but I'm worried that it's different than the popular opinion. Thanks for leaving your input or even just having a look.

In order of record:

#1

#2

#3

Hey Kent
I'm torn between 2 & 3, but I'm leaning towards #2. 2 & 3 appear to have a bit more contrast and "punch", but 2 seems a bit more symetrical - and it seems to keep my eyes in the frame a bit longer. It feels a bit more balanced with the peak of color centered in #2. Normally I shy away from centering a subject, but this is nicely balanced in my opinion.

In order of preference: 2, 1, then 3. The mixture of colours and lines just seems best in #2.

I didn't realize you had a blog Kent - I look forward to following it!

I love all three - number 2 is probably my favorite, and then number 3, but it is nearly a photo finish.

#2 really catches my eye. The lines of the tree branches are the strongest in it, as far as I'm concerned. It seems to have emotion....and movement.
Next is #3, and then #1 is a distant third. In both #1 and #3, I'm bothered a bit by that dark area in the middle; I keep peering into to see if there's anything in there.

3 - 2 - 1. The brighter, more uniform light across the trees appeals to me more. You are getting very good at shooting and stitching these together.