Winner on the night Digital & Print competitions and beginners course, October 3rd

Hi Folks,

Last night was the second session of the beginner’s course being held in the back room. I understand last night’s talk was about Adobe Lightroom and NIK software used to enhance photographs. During the interval speaking to a couple of the guys attending the course they said as beginners it was a bit tough going for them. I did say for the present just be aware that the software is there for later use. Thinking back around that time in the club I found it tough going too, especially not having the software but later found when needing to achieve a task I ran my software whilst looking at example through Youtube and following it blow by blow. However, there will be other demonstrations and advice later on in the club evenings like the critique nights where you can have hands on advice etc.

For the rest of us it was a double ‘winner on the night’ Print and Digital competition. There were 28 entries in the digital competition which was the first competition to start the evening and the Judge was Kevin Day from Stoke Poges.

I split my entries with one in the digital and two in the prints as I thought on a level playing field there would be less entries in the print section but with odds of 15/2 it made no difference lol.

So after a run through of the digital images Peter said they were all of good quality and he already had a good idea of his selection and some of the others would have to be marked down accordingly as they can not all get a 20.

The first to be held back in the competition was Emma by Nick Razey

Peter said the strong lighting works nicely and the orange and blue tones worked well together. It created a green hue on the back of the hair amongst the shadow at the back. The smokey atmosphere in the background enhanced the image which was better than just a black background

The second entry held back was the 7:36 from Paddington by Peter Carter

The Judge Peter said he was intrigued as to where the train was going? He loved the colours and the early morning sun through the mist defusing the pinks, greens, blues and violets into a sort of rainbow. The strength of the green field worked well with the yellow of the train. The image almost looked as if done by an impressionist and cleverly included the cloud to give a good depth of field

The third to be held back was Preparing for the tattoo show by Chenxi Ni

Peter liked the scene where the girl was dominate in the picture and the composition of the picture worked well with his eyes bouncing backwards and forwards between the trio

The fourth to be held back was the penguin by Steve Beckett

Peter said this picture had everything you could want in the picture and put together well. The character is well dressed for the part and the lighting set well against a derelict background.

The fifth picture held back was Girl in the window by John Timbrell

The girl is only a small part of the picture but dominates the scene and everything about it works

The final picture to be held back was Portrait of Ken by Brian Worley

The controlled lighting and the mood of engagement makes this a beautiful portrait

So of the six held back there were points awarded and a first, second and third places

1st The 7:36am Train from Paddington by Peter Carter, 20

2nd The Portrait of Ken by Brian Worley, 20

3rd The Penguin by Steve Beckett, 20

close were

Emma by Nick Razey, 19

Preparing for the Tattoo show by Chenxi Ni, 19

Girl in the window by John Timbrell, 19

Coffee time

The print competition had fifteen entries

The first to be held back was The barn owl by Kathy Chandler

A beautifully taken shot, said Peter with the light just breaking under the wing. Peter could see a church door or window defused in the background and the owl was nicely sitting on a gravestone. The tones were delightful and in surroundings not many people go to visit.

The next to be held back was The Mod by Steve Beckett

Peter really like this one with its lovely angles from the horizon and the detail in the cyclist’s eye. The guy was not engaging and Peter did not want him to be in this shot. A lovely image in black and white said Peter.

The next held back was Light and Dark by Steve Beckett

Just a bit of dust being picked up on the print from being on the table but a great shot with a compelling story to be told.

the next held back was Emily Dancing by John Timbrell

Peter said this has a cosy comfortable feel to it but seems to be in conflict with drama and excitement however Peter asked for it to be held back

the last to be held back was the Grey Heron by Chenxi Ni

Peter loved the space around the bird , the quality of the detail (not in my image taken of it, sorry) and the reflection although not a mirror image was gorgeous and we can see what is going on. The image would stand out in any nature magazine

So we then had the result of first, second and third

1st Black or White by Steve Beckett, 20

2nd Grey Heron by Chenxi Ni, 20

3rd The Mod by Steve Beckett, 20

unlucky

4th The Barn Owl by Kathy Chandler, 20

5th Emily Dancing by John Tinbrell, 19

Next week

Informal Critique Evening tbc