Winner on the Night (2) Sharp Images and Open Print, Tuesday 15th January 2018

Hi Folks,

Tuesday night was the second ‘Winner on the Night’ competition with the theme of Sharp required in image form and the open being prints only. The judge for the evening was Cat Humphries from Croxley CC. Cat had a look through the selection of prints at the beginning of the evening before doing any judging on them.

 

So on the open print round

The first to be held back was titled

Salam

A moody picture, said Cat and she would not want to bump into her at night. All strange looks always create a response as the face in this image does. Although the image is in monochrome to create mystery, the dress I think was black anyway said Cat. Exposed well, her hands are very white but hold up well

 

The second to be held back was titled

Robin Redbreast

Glorious colour and spot on with the shutter speed. The picture does not show how big the bird is but that does not matter. The log adds texture to it and the background is completely plain which is different from the usual images with leaves and branches

 

The third to be held back was titled

Elevator

A striking image as an abstract. It is almost difficult to see what the subject  is but does not matter in competition. Lines are coming in at the right angles and an accomplished picture.

 

The fourth to be held back was titled

Alice in Zombie land

I am not sure I would like to be in the tunnel with her, said Cat. The author has thought about this and used a wide angle lens which adds shapes that makes one feel uneasy especially if things just don’t look right to the brain.

 

The fifth to be held back was titled

Lanner Falcon

Taken with a high shutter speed to freeze the look of the bird in flight. The author has just got the bird’s head looking this way to give contact. This is very important to have the contact with any subject being taken. The front wing is nicely in the downward direction.

 

The last to be held back was titled

Open door

A pinpoint sharp picture showing the different textures. Photographed close in to show all the wall paper textures and the paint peeling to be seen. The blue floor coordinates well with the dark door. A very satisfactory and well presented print.

 

So six were held back and it was decision time

1st was Alice in Zombie Land by Steve Beckett (Judges Choice) 20 points

2nd was Lanner Falcon by Chenxi Ni, 20 points

3rd was Salem by Steve Beckett, 20 points

4th Robin Redbreast by Kathy Chantler 20 points

5th Open Door by Barry Coxon, 19 points

6th Elevator by Chenxi Ni, 19 points

 

Coffee time

 

After coffee it was the theme of Sharp and Cat asked for a run through of all 26 images

the first to be held back was titled

Pied Kingfisher

The beak is sharp and the definition of field is sharp on the head and beak.

 

The second to be held back was titled

Key of F sharp

Well thought out for the theme. Everything is positioned carefully and done well which is under harsh lighting. The background does make the eyes go fussy after a while but well done.

 

The third to be held back was titled

Looks sharp to me

The eyes are perfectly sharp and the skin tones are good and work nicely

 

The fourth to be held back was titled

Crocodile on shore of Lake Siwandu

Cat at this point was asked to speed up so did not get all comments

Nice and sharp and in focus

 

The fifth to be held back was titled

Natural defence

Nice and sharp and thank you for the key line

 

The sixth to be held back was titled

Sharp and to the point

Yes would not want to be stuck on that, said Cat. The crop is just right and some grainy stuff on the horn

 

The last to be held back was titled

F  major

A nice warm feel to the double exposure and good work in Photoshop.

 

So with seven held back it was time for Cat to decide the result

1st Natural Defence by Barry Coxon, (Judge’s choice), 20 points

2nd Crocodile on the shore of Lake Siwandu by Sarah Jennings

3rd  Key of F sharp by Nick Bennett, 20 points

4th F major by Chris Andrews, 20 points

5th Sharp and to the point by Kathy Chantler, 19 points

”    Pied King Fisher by Sarah Jennings, 19 points

”    Looks sharp to me by Brian Worley, 19 points

 

Next week is

Club Members Present…