Bagdad

this is your strongest photo but the highlights are blown out...

Very nice shot. I like the composition.
Maybe less exposure or maybe some dodging during the exposure on the Vertical sign portion. Or a ND filter. It just glares.

I'm a sucker for night shots of neon signs. This subject presents some interesting possibililities. Everyone has their own vision, but I wonder what it would look like if you had moved a bit to the left to eliminate the large negative space.

In my view the over-exposed h'light actually works. I think it might lose some interest otherwise. Think something in the negative space could be an advantage in this case.

I like the negative space. It works but the blown highs keep me from looking at the entire picture.

The good
Interesting subject
Composition is ok
exposure looks v good

The bad
Cropped a little tight top bottom and left. The top and bottom don't bother me as much as the mystery of the items peaking into the frame.

Fixes
I shoot objects that interest me as many ways as I can think of. From a distance up close, straight on, etc... You don't just want to document it you want to capture what it is and why it is you like it. The obvious shot doesn't always do it. This sign has a roll or two written all over it.

I am a particular fan of night photography. I even got chased off one night by a guy with a 5-ft machete. Anyway, I think the biggest improvement you could have made here would be to use compensating development to keep the neon lights from being over-exposed. While a light source, I have seen photographers keep this under control and in the final print the neon lights are clear and distinct. One old trick is to arrive before the turn the lights on, make an exposure for the scene as you would want it to look, and when they turn on the lights make a double exposure metering just for the lights. And then there is compensating development. You can practice this right in your own home by setting up scenes with very strong contrast (turn on a flourescent light if you have one), make some exposures with a lot of contrast and them practice developing the negatives until the lights come out better. You might look at some of the night photography of George Tice to see what is possible.

Good luck.

-Mike