This is actually a complex problem.
On the one hand, we would want every image to have a clear set of comments.
On the other hand, you want to maintain the sense of community (and the option for a sideways discussion to arise, like in this week's thread the very interesting conversation between Minniev and Jim Kasson: such a conversation only arises from a bigger well, than just the C&C on one image).
Having a separate thread for every image would result, IMHO, in too much isolation.
Having multiple images in a thread has other additional benefits:
* a person interested in diverse kinds of images and C&C, can open the single thread, scroll down and pass multiple images and multiple comments until he/she finds an image he/she wants to say something about, and/or a discussion worth participating in - this would be less the case if every image gets its own thread: who is going to open all of those.
* sometimes (like we have had multiple times in the other place), a coincidental theme arises, and there is opportunity to compare and refer
* or if someone is not really inspired to put up an image, browsing through the weekly gathering may spark a sense of "hmm, I could post something in that vein too".
There you have it, I have used the word: "gathering".
A C&C thread with multiple images and comments that are mutually exchanged, is a gathering.
A bunch of individual threads, in which every time a single member invites C&C without reciprocating (unless in another separate thread) would not feel like a gathering, but like a bunch of individual requests. Many question marks, less dialogue.
The bottom line is, that our previous formatting was perfect (for our purposes): we had the sense of community associated with a single thread as a weekly gathering. And we had threaded view, to make the experience of watching and commenting well structured.
In this forum, threaded view is (not yet) implemented. It may come.
For me, currently, the main thing is to maintain our sense of community.
And that, in my personal conviction, is better served by struggling with the inconvenience of many images in a single thread, than by the visual convenience of individual threads...
Just my two cents, of course.
Roel