Winner on the Night (3), Tuesday 12th March 2019

Hi Folks,

Last night was the third ‘winner on the night’ competition where entries could only be in print. The Judge for the evening was Micki Aston from Windsor PS. As there were no digital entries allowed members entered a total of 34 prints and this was the highest number of print entries in the club competitions for four years.

Micki said, she was here to encourage photography and not put people off from taking pictures and her marks would not be lower than 13 out of 20.

 

The first to be held back by Micki was print number two which was titled

Pink Pelican

WOW a fabulous image, said Micki with beautiful detail in the feathers and just caught at the right moment by the author. The eyes are sharp and the print is set in a double mount. Well done to the author. I’ll hold that back, said Micki.

 

The next to be held back was print number six which was titled

Rushing Travellers

Travellers caught in an image swirl with one static person looking on. Taken with a slow shutter speed, Micki said, she did not mind the grid in the middle as it did not interfere with the static person.

 

The next to be held back was print number nine which was titled

Droplet Collision

I can’t get enough of these pictures, said Micki and this one blows me away. The red and the blue work so well together and this one sits better than any others I have seen. Micki said, she was enjoying this and wanted it held back.

 

The next image to be held back was print number twelve which was titled

Curves

a nicely taken building with the curves at the right angles. This works well in monochrome with the author’s interpretation and the contrast is also very good

 

The next image to be held back was print number fifteen which was titled

Hmong Girl

There are many ethnic groups in various parts of the world that dress beautifully for tourist photographs. The landscape behind is lovely and the print has great colours. The hands on the lady are so graceful and a lovely shot.

 

The next to be held back was print number nineteen which was titled

Birds for Sale

How well photographed and the lovely coloured wall with the shadows of the bird cages on it and the orange hat and green wall works so well. Micki wanted it to be held back.

 

There was a coffee break and a chance to look at all the prints displayed on the table.

In the second half

Print number twenty was held back which was titled

Skateboarder and Graffiti

Judges are always looking for something different, something that engages the eye. Micki said, she was enjoying the effects of  colours fanning out from the skateboards giving movement and speed.

 

Print number twenty one was also held back which was titled

A Pink Kind of Day

A 1940’s feel to this print with a lovely lady dressed in a pink skirt with a belt. The lady’s legs are crossed gracefully and she has good skin tones. Micki loved the blossom in the tree in the background and indeed as the title says a pink day.

 

The next to be held back was print twenty six which was titled

Burrowing Owl in flight

It is really difficult to get everything sharp when a bird is in flight but the author has achieved this. The eyes are sharp, the feathers have great detail and the beak is also sharp. The background is seamless but Micki said she was just  being picky suggesting to crop a small part off the bottom.

 

The next to be held back was print number thirty two which was titled

Window Seat

delicious lighting and the open hand of the person makes this picture for Micki. There are various elements in the scene but all come together well.

 

The next to be held back was print number thirty three which was titled

Luang Prabang market

A perfectly sharp picture of a lady in front with others in the line going out of focus which draws your eye to the lady. The lady in looking strangely at the author and Micki said, she is guessing that the author just took the picture and the woman was wondering what was going on. It would have been better to have made some interaction with the lady first or perhaps buy some wares to make the woman more at ease. The lady is pin sharp

 

The last to be held back was print number thirty four which was titled

Row boats on Windermere

The angles of the boats are good with the lovely jetty in the distance. A nice sky and a pleasing landscape with gorgeous colours but there are two signs in the distance that need to be cloned out which should not be in a landscape picture.

So with twelve held back Micki had to give the scores and after a great deliberation she awarded first, second and third places from eight prints that had all been awarded twenty points.

Result

1 Birds for Sale by Kathy Chantler, 20 points (and Judge’s choice)

2 Window seat by Kathy Chantler, 20 points

3 Pink Pelican by Chenxi Ni, 20 points

Also

Rushing Travellers by John Timbrell, 20 points

Water drop Collision by Chenxi Ni, 20 points

Curves by Tami Nunley, 20 points

Burrowing Owl by Chenxi Ni, 20 points

Luang Prabang Market by Nick Bennett, 20 points

Row Boats on Windermere by David Gibbs, 19 points

Hmong Girl by Nick Bennett, 19 points

A Pink Kind of Day by Nick Bennett, 19 points

Skateboarder and Graffiti by John Timbrell, 19 points

Next week is

Guest Speaker – 3D Photography – Colin Bright