I think the rotating photos create a poor UX. The purpose of this layout it seems is to let users view the images carefully and study the details, but the slideshow effect makes that difficult.

I agree, furthermore the two dots at the bottom of each "slideshow" feel like poor design

Why overlay anything on top of something like that?

From a casual browsing perspective, I liked it. However, it'd be nice to have it pause when you hover over one - or something like that. To get the best of both worlds.

I mean if your intent is to view the images carefully and study the details why not click through to the details page and see larger, more detailed photos?