Gerbera daisies 21.5 Kathryn Martin Creative Master
J1 Can see this hanging on a wall. Good to see some petals sharp as they provide the eye a place to focus on. the repetition of the flower in the background is well done as is the continuation of the flowers colour.
Polaroid 22 Leonie Holmes FCAPA Creative Master
J2 Good concept; the tulip images are a good base image to work with. The scattered images have to be carefully placed to achieve good composition and this has fallen apart in the lower part of the image where overlay errors are showing up. Also it might be advisable to use a slightly off-white in the frame as the very bright white is stark and overwhelms the beautiful subtle colours of the tulips.
Masked 21 BPP Jon Dun Creative Bronze
J2 Good concept and story. Problems with the image include a colour bias toward magenta that could be corrected/altered with colour balancing in post processing if this was not intended by the maker as part of the story. Also most of the detail in the whites in the facial mask are not visible. Again , if the maker wishes and if there is pixel detail present, this could be fixed in post processing by tweaking the whites.
Eastern Great Egret 20.5 Mike Moffat Nature Bronze
J3 Very good example of egret perched. Focus is good and eye level camera position is very good. Some good feather detail on wings. Background color is interesting and not distracting.
Exposure highlights on egrets breast and neck could be reduced using a mask to bring up more detail. Particularly towards the shoulder and neck area.
Although a good example of perching the overall image is static in nature.
Killdeer chick growing like a weed 23 Greg Alderson Nature Master
J2 Very endearing and strong story with natural soft lighting and sufficiently sharp detail on the subject . The impact is humorous because of the scruffy look of the young bird which appears to have an oversize knee joint. Great candidate for humorous nature images!! Perhaps bring out the eye detail and darken the dirt a little.
Ring billed gull reflects 23.5 Greg Alderson Nature Master
J3 Simple, very well composed image of gull. Detail of gull shows with depth of field and chosen shutter speed. Whites and blacks are very good, and do not reflect much of color cast of water. Still water provides a non distracting background, and with reflection adds depth to image.
The gesture of the gull (beak) at the water is excellent.
There are a few of the very small water spots that could be removed.
Cormorant Drying His Wings 23.5 HM BPP Harish Bhaskar Nature Bronze
J2 Very good capture/rendition of the subject from behind in a pose that so well represents this species of bird. Good background of water/wavelets lit by interesting lighting. There would have been a higher score if the bird#039;s head had been slightly more turned to the right so the eyes and beak (ie head in profile) were visible. Very balanced exposure where a darker subject on a brighter background works well.
Rock pigeons mourn their loss 26 TC DP Greg Alderson Nature Master
J3 An interesting mourning moment captured/documented. The gestures of two pigeons makes for an excellent show oi the moment.
Exposure and depth of field handled well. Low camera angle is what is required.
Suggest image maker consider adding some contrast to image and darken the area around the pigeons which will highlight the birds more, and compliment the mood.
Juvenile Coopers Hawk 22 BPP Jon Dun Nature Bronze
J3 Very nice image of hawk with the timing to catch the bird seemingly just turning. Good shutter speed choice to catch this moment. Eyes and body of bird sharp from head to tail. Shows the detail very well.
The white balance of bird is excellent; whites are white.
Image maker made to choice to have the hawk all in focus, however with the depth of field chosen this leaves all the background detail which becomes distracting to the viewer. Learn your lens, so you can open it up, to reduce the detail
Meadow Crane#039;s-bill after a rain 21 David Evans Nature Master
J3 Color and detail of flower are handled well. Backlight to show this detail is good. Background is not distracting.
Image is very tightly cropped, including the flower being cut off at bottom or foreground. Central placement with the crop contributes to the appearance of a static flower. Suggest leaving more space and examine the flower from different angles.
Cabbage White Butterfly 25 HM DP Geoff Dunn Nature Master
J2 Beautifully captured story of a butterfly feeding. No technical or compositional issues. There#039;s such good detail on the face, antennae, wings and legs of this tiny creature, and careful positioning on a colourful, complimentary, blurred background. This image inspires a mood of wonder and is a terrific example of why we should care about preserving the natural environment.
Deptfort Pink 21.5 Elzbieta Piskorz Nature Master
J2 The strength of this image is the three element composition with strong diagonal lines and strong natural colours on a clean black background. While the two open flowers and their leaves have lots of sharp detail, the second middle shoot in the middle does not; a greater depth of field would be required to fix this in capture. The diagonal lines and clean natural look set a fresh energetic mood which reflects the nature of this plant.
Striped Coralroot 23 GPP Janet McNally Nature Gold
J3 Subtle soft, fairly even light which highlights the interesting colors of the coralroot. Good focus and depth of field chosen.
Although depth of field helps to minimizes background distraction, there are areas of the background which could be darkened (right side) to improve the image.
With these types of images, the background is an important element which can detract from the strength of the plant itself.
Lantana closeup 18.5 David Evans Nature Master
J2 Water drops establish a good story of rain soaked flowers. Also much of the image is sharp. However as a nature image there needs to be a strong center of interest. While there is visual interest in the brighter yellow/orange flowers that ring the more central darker out of focus red flowers, the image would be stronger if the maker had organized the composition around 1-3 flower(s) as a center of interest.
Black eyed susan and common lovebug 24.5 DP Kathryn Martin Nature Master
J3 Interesting subject, very well composed. Depth of field chosen is good which allows principle subject to stand out. Color contrast is showing pistil color attractive to insect; excellent.
Suggest the crop is very tight. The image may benefit from a little more space all around particularly background flower.
Very good image.
White Throated Sparrow 22 Andy Langs Nature Gold
J3 Well side lit image of sparrow which shows detail of plumage. Head, eye are in focus. Interesting perch for sparrow.
Consider taking down the white highlights of throat and head to bring up more detail. Bring up shadows on left side of bird.
There are some distracting elements (branches, right side amp; top) that can either be toned down or consider a crop.
Bald Eagle wing touch 2 23 Victor Turczynski Nature Master
J3 Excellent focus, shutter speed to capture detail of eagle. Great gesture with the wing tip, plus the look of determination. Eagle positioned well in the frame.
Good color contrast with eagle in its hunting environment.
Detail of background reeds/bushes show the environment but because of detail are somewhat distracting.
Hidden Valley 22 BPP Joe Teixeira Pictorial Bronze
J3 Pleasant autumn scene with good depth of field with water leading the viewers eye. Fall color is highlighted where the light is brightest.
The light is quite uneven through the scene; brighter through the central area, darkest on right side. Very bright in foreground water. Did maker use a polarizer?
Think about using a mask to bring up exposure on right side of image, and darken (a little) the bright areas at bottom and top of image.
Big and Small 22.5 BPP Joe Teixeira Pictorial Bronze
J2 The strength of this image is the impressionist rendering of the natural foliage to evoke a mood of artistry, wistfulness and delicacy. The story is strong and colours are delicate and natural. The horizon appears not to be level but this is somewhat moot since the water/sky amp; land intersection is difficult to discern. In this case it is suggested that the maker adjust the tilt a little down on the right to give the viewer a greater sense of stability.
Colour Me Rad 20.5 Chris Sparks Pictorial Bronze
J2 A moment in the action has been captured with sufficient sharpness amp; colours are natural. However the story is not as strong as it might be if there were a stronger focus on some unique action or interaction among the people; many images may have to be taken in order to find such a magic moment. The image could be cropped at the top to eliminate the eye catching white structure in the top right.
Fall colours 19 Mike Moffat Pictorial Bronze
J2 The feeling of fall is strongly evoked. However the oranges are slightly oversaturated; this could be corrected by reducing the vibrance/saturation of orange a little. Also it seems like the image is tipped slightly to the right and this might be corrected by straightening the right hand side of the image, or rotating the entire image to the left.
The Battery St Johns Newfoundland 24 DP Geoffrey Skirrow Pictorial Master
J2 Good exposure and time of day to obtain balanced lighting: evening ambient light in the sky and man-made street /house lighting. Details in rock face show well. The technical characteristics of the image work well, and a mood of quiet contemplative stillness is established. Dramatic weather in the sky might have added extra impact.
Wahwashkesh Lake Sunset 20 Geoffrey Skirrow Pictorial Master
J1 dramatic sky colour. Horizon is centred, which is ok here due to the reflections of the sky in the water. typically, horizons are best at the 1/3 mark. Maker has done well lightening the shadows in the bushes. too bad there is not something in the water such as a boat, to add some interest to the image.
KKK SHEEP 17.5 John Bunyon Pictorial Gold
J2 While the foreground sheep tell the kkk story, the bright cluttered background needs to be eliminated to minimize this distraction. Also framing the sheep with the kkk hoods more prominently and lightening the exposure of this part of the image while eliminating the foreground railing would also strengthen the story.
THE STRAW IS TASTIER ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FENC 16.5 John Bunyon Pictorial Gold
J2 The image intends to capture a humorous moment and the story could be good. However both subjects are out of focus, not well exposed and their faces are not well positioned to allow the viewer to grasp what is happening. It is recommended that the maker position the camera so that the depth of field and plane of focus are parallel to the action, and use a fast shutter speed to freeze the movement.
Kite takeoff 21.5 Andy Langs Pictorial Gold
J3 Interesting implied symmetry with power pole spread with kite wings spread. Good patience and timing! Exposure with pole is excellent, however bring the exposure up a little (10) with kite.
As presented the pole dominates the image. Consider a crop with a little off the top, right side and left side just before struts begin. The kite should appear more prominent in image.
Mountain Hues 22.5 SPP Laura Nelson Pictorial Silver
J2 Very delicate mood is captured well with subtle tones and lines. The split of land vs. sky is pretty much 50/50 ; consideration could be given to cropping a little at the top to reduce the space in the top half. This would have the advantage of removing some of the white cloud in the top left for a better balance of tonality and use of space in the overall image.
The horse wins 22.5 Kathryn Martin Pictorial Master
J3 Excellent documentation of the action. Timing with rider falling behind is great. Exposure and shutter speed well chosen. Good image for sports reporting.
The background and left side of image with partial horse are distracting elements. A more open depth of field will help with background. The black corner could easily be replaced with a selection in CS and filled with white.
Benjamin tucked in 23 GPP Valerie Goodfellow Pictorial Gold
J3 What can be said about this beautiful infant? Well lighted with soft highlights; well composed with baby tucked in but with gesture of arms at both sides. Focus is on the head and eyes; very good. Chosen depth of field is quite shallow, and with overhead angle at which the image is made, focus falls off dramatically. Did the image maker take any with a greater depth of field to allow all of baby to be in focus?
The overall color temp of image is warm, so whites are more yellow than white.
Autumn Landscapes 19.5 Francesco Berri Pictorial Bronze
J2 Capture of the water works well; bright foreground rock could be darkened to eliminate this eye catching distraction; light patches in the background forest floor could be darkened to focus the viewer#039;s attention on the water in the mid ground.
Milky way - Algonquin Park 22 BPP Francesco Berri Pictorial Bronze
J3 Overall a solid image of capturing milky way. Good choice for timing to obtain almost pinpoint stars.
While foreground shows the silhouetted trees of park area, they are #039;blocking' and without detail on the left.
A more interesting foreground choice would have helped to increase 'wow' factor of milky way.
Cool Cooper 23.5 GPP Valerie Goodfellow Pictorial Gold
J3 Interesting clothing chosen for Cooper. B amp; W works well for this composition to reduce the business of the background.
Well focused and lighting on Cooper. The whites and shadows are on the model are handled very well.
The background and busyness is the most significant issue which takes the eye away from the subject. Place your subject where background is not so difficult.
Image maker might think about taking a little lower camera position to give Cooper a stronger look.
LUCY IM HOME 17.5 John Bunyon Pictorial Gold
J2 Who is the white goat standing tall announcing itself to? This is not altogether clear so the story is confusing. The lighting is very harsh . And the inclusion of the person and vehicles is distracting and not necessary. There is a tilt to the image and this could be improved by cropping the image to bring the verticals straight up.
Sturgeon Moon Rising 22.5 Janet McNally Pictorial Gold
J3 Very nice image of colorful moon. Good depth of field chosen to show detail. Fairly sharp, therefor circumference is well defined.
Although viewer can make out some detail in foreground trees, it is very dark without much interest.
Consider light painting some detail into foreground when making image or travelling to vantage point with foreground of more interest. Do you know about the PhotoPills organization? They teach/publish about how to get the best night landscapes.
Setting Sun 17 James Hamilton Pictorial Gold
J2 The strength of this image is the story of the sun#039;s power as it sinks toward the horizon. However the image has major technical issues. The glare of this extreme highlight makes it very difficult to capture detail in both darks and lights so detail has been lost in the highlights. Other technical problems: lack of detail in out of focus blobs of foliage between the lens and the evergreen needles; it's best to remove the distracting elements before capture .. it 's difficult to fix in post.
Nature#039;s Tangle 17.5 James Hamilton Pictorial Gold
J2 The tangle of this nature story is clear but there is too much overall tonal similarity for a successful image. Darkening it might help bring out the natural tonality.
But it is likely that improving the image will require the maker to: 1) go back to the tonality of the image as it appeared to the natural eye, or 2) go further with creative post processing to produce an impressionist image . J3 Color contrast of greens and gold work to provide some interest. Chosen depth of field allows view to look into the tangle.
What does the image maker want the viewer to see as the intent of the image? There does not seem to be an entry point into and through the image.
Consider selective shading by darkening or lightening an entry point into the tangle.
Feeling Fall 20 James Hamilton Pictorial Gold
J2 Concept of design of dark branches against the fall colours is good. Might try eliminating the eye catching patches of sky for greater impact. In some areas the structure of the leaves has been lost and if this happened in post processing, it might be possible to clone some back in. There are some intrusive twigs coming in from the bottom which should be removed ; try cloning them out.
Sky Bridge At Sunrise 21.5 BPP Harish Bhaskar Pictorial Bronze
J3 Pleasant morning scene which benefits from the blue gold/pink color contrast. Depth of field and focus on main elements work well.
Assume the main picture element is the bridge. However the most significant element is the lighted dock of barrier in the foreground. It is very prominent. If the bridge is the subject, could the image maker move to a view point to eliminate this structure?
Because of shutter speed the rocks in foreground become distractions (not sharp). Remove them.
