2021 March Winners

Topic: OPEN Judge: John Craig

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BASIC LEVEL ENTRIES

: FIRST PLACE 7.0 The tall trees compliment the orientation of the image while the diagonal path pulls my eye down into the forest. I think the lighting helps the separation of the trees from the background and high lights the moss. I feel the story would be stronger with a person in the scene.

: SECOND PLACE 6.5 I like the diagonal line the grass along the shore creates. It helps give the image energy and differentiate the actual trees from the reflection on the still water of the lake. My eye gets pulled to the bright downed log on the right. Maybe it could be toned down?

: 6.0 I like how the trees in the foreground are nicely backlit. The lighting creates good color, texture and form. While the background is nicely separated from the foreground by haze and focus, I feel there is too much of the bright sky and distant mountain. I would suggest cropping down below the top of the mountain. It would help emphasis the colorful foreground and keep my eye wondering to the bright sky.

: 6.0 This tree has beautiful yellow leaves that compliment the clear blue sky. Did you try a horizontal composition to include more of the setting? It might strengthen the story you want to tell about this fall scene.

ADVANCED LEVEL ENTRIES

: FIRST PLACE 7.5 The front of the building creates a strong compositional triangular. I find the lines, shapes, and tones of this classic architecture appealing. The monochromatic treatment creates contrast and impact to the image. For me personally, I think some lens corrections would improve the presentation. Others my appreciate the tilted perspective.

: SECOND PLACE 7.0 I like the simplicity of the image. For me, the soft cool tones in the background help emphasize the shape and form of the flower. The undulating curves are appealing to me. I would like to have seen a little more depth of field.

: THIRD PLACE 7.0 I think the position of the opera house and the ferry create a balanced composition. The high angle adds depth and interest. I feel there could be more room in front of the ferry. Maybe the brightness of the sky could be brought down and the foreground brought up a little?

: 6.5 The sepia tone gives the picture an old time look. The image is sharp and well exposed. I feel the power lines are a distraction

: 6.0 I think the two swimmers on each side of the image make a good frame. I like that the swimmer in the middle is leaning forward creating a diagonal line. I feel that the story would be more interesting if his head was tilted up as though he were talking directly to one of the other swimmers.

: 6.0 I like that there is room for the horse to run into. I think the upper body of the jockey is sharp enough to make the image work. I would like to have seen all of the horse’s tail and feet included in the image.

MASTER LEVEL ENTRIES

: FIRST PLACE 9.0 I think the graphic nature of the windmill silhouettes against a strong sunset sky creates shapes that add interest and impact to the image. They look like giant man made flowers spread out across the horizon. I find my eye looking at the unique structure and shape of each one. The warm glow of the setting sun and blue sky compliment each other.

: SECOND PLACE 8.0 The main thing that caught my eye was the story elements in the image, particularly the rider, his horse and his dog. For me, I can see the what I think is the effort the rider is making to position his horse to keep the mare and colt moving in the direction he wants them to go. I can also see the effort the horse is making to get turned it the right direction. It appears to me the dog is looking at the horse and rider to get his cue for where to go. I like the way the dust under the horses hooves adds energy to the image. While my eye sees the willows and river in the background, most of my attention stays with the action in the foreground. I appreciate how the warm colors of the foreground compliment the cool tones of the river.

: THIRD PLACE 7.5 This image appears like it might be an infrared image because of the black portion of the sky. Regardless, the high contrast black and white treatment adds impact and interest. For me, the dark sky and clouds balance with the bright craggy monolith. I like the diagonal line the base of the rock makes leading my eye up into the rock. Everything is sharp and well exposed. I think the moon helps unify the sky with the foreground. While the moon is small in the frame, I think it helps give a sense of scale. There is one small thing, I would like to see the dark sky just below the moon smoothed out to match the surrounding sky.

: HM 7.5 I think the model’s expression conveys to me the story that she feels like she looks pretty cool in her new cowboy boots. There is reasonable depth of field between the boots on display and the model. For me, the warm tones of the tungsten light in the background works with theblue daylight tones of the jeans and the model. Her hat and jacket are in keeping with the theme of western wear. The hat in particular draws my eye to the face of the model. I think the jacket could have been smoothed down to help deemphasis the models mid-drift. I found the over exposure of her left hand to be distracting.

: HM 7.5 I appreciate the artistry of this image. I see apposing diagonal lines between the background and the face of the skater that adds energy and interest to the image. I think the slow shutter speed combined with a quick pan nicely blurred the background which creates an abstract version of the skaters’ movements.

: 7.0 The image has good depth of field, sharpness and exposure. The four different planes of water, trees, mountains, and sky make an interesting composition. I think the colors work well together and help move my eye to the mountains. To me, the image appears to be a little over saturated and unfortunately the main peaks of the mountains are in deep shadow.

: 6.5 The title helps emphasize the human characteristic of affection between the adult and juvenile birds. The exposure is well handled and processed to show detail in the feathers and face of the birds. The birds create a triangular composition that keeps my eye moving within the frame.

: 6.5 For me, the strong sun light on the peaks emphasizes the angular shape of this rugged coast line. I feel there is a good balance between the amount of sky an ocean. I see a greenish tint in the clouds on the right side of the image.

: 6.0 I think the vertical aspect works well for the subject. The church spire is place in a strong compositional part of the frame. The mountains make a good background for the church. I feel like there is an overall blue cast to the image that I find distracting.

: 6.0 The roadrunner is sharp and you can see good detail in the feathers. Perhaps if the bird was exhibiting some mating or feeing behavior the image would have more impact.

: 6.0 I like that there is room for the horse to run into. I think the upper body of the jockey is sharp enough to make the image work. I would like to have seen all of the horse’s tail and feet included in the image.

: 6.0 : The captain is certainly colorfully dressed. I think the composition could be improved by leaving less space behind him and more room in front.

: 6.0 The low angle sun creates nice shadows and textures in the sand and warm tones in the plants. I feel the out of focus grass in the foreground obscures and detracts from your three amigos.

: 6.0 A majestic scene looking down into a glacial basin. I like the placement of the glacier between the two mountain peeks. The river and glacier make a good diagonal line that leads my eye into the image. The colors and exposure work for the image. I think the idea of including the lichen covered rock in the foreground is good, however I would like a little more of it to be part of the story. I found there to be a lack of detail and sharpness in the image.

: 7.5 The image shows good depth of field and is well exposed. I see two strong compositional elements. The foreground river bank is placed in the lower 1/3rd of the frame creating a diagonal line between the smooth reflection and the actual bluff in the mid ground. The bluff shape creates a strong triangular pyramid shape filled with striations of what appears to be sedimentary rock. I think the warm earth tones compliment the blue tones of the sky and the river. The moon is well exposed but its location in the composition creates a Christmas tree effect for me that I find distracting.

: 6.0 I think the uplifted rocks create diagonal lines that add visual energy to the image. The shutter speed appears fast enough to freeze the foliage but slow enough to give the falling water a sense of movement. The strong midday sun is producing hard deep shadows.

: 6.0 The image is sharp and there is good detail in the feathers. The turned head and raised talon add some interest. I think the hawk is well placed in the frame, leaving room for the bird to look. The left talon merges with the bottom of the frame. I think the man made railing detracts from the impact of the image.

: 5.5 It look like a cold day. Do you suppose the hawk is eyeing the robin down in the lower left corner of the image? I think I see a cyan color cast. Cropping much of the right side would help the composition. The tail merges with the bottom of the frame. Unfortunately, branches obscure the hawk’s head.

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