Contrast 22 Graham Jardine Pictorial Gold
J3 This colourful image tells the story of the beauty of leaves turning in the fall. The composition could have been made stronger had the maker found a feature element for the viewer to focus on.
Cold Steamy Reception at the Lake 22.5 John King Pictorial Gold
J3 The composition of this image may benefit from a panorama crop especially off the top. The forest behind the building is flat and lacks tonal range and contrast. The title of the image refers to the mist on the water but this is not the main subject and a different title may have been considered. Technically the building and foreground water are well presented.
Sahara Sand Dune Shadows 17.5 Cherylene Stimers Pictorial Bronze
J1 Very nice composition and light with the image. Unfortunately the image is not in focus. Was the camera on a tripod? J2 this image is very soft and could easier be improved with sharpening. lovely lighting. less sky is needed to improve the composition.
Arboretum Transition - Fall Colours to First Snow 23 Geoff Dunn Pictorial Master
J1 Pleasant scene that tells the story of seasonal transition. Very evenly exposed without significant contrast because of flat light. Because of flatness the image maker should introduce some contrast with post processing in LR or CS. Darken some of the paths and bushes with a brush to vary the depth of the image. The depth of field with this image seems f16/18 so everything is in focus and nothing much is isolated or stands out.
fall farm 22 Carey Hope Pictorial Gold
J2 Although there might be some colour in the fields, this presentation gives one the impression that the maker has chosen to selectively colour only the trees and buildings in the distance, which makes an unusual landscape. consider cropping up to the stripes in the fields for a panoramic version as there#039;s too much negative space in the foreground
First Contact 20 Robert Segarra Pictorial Bronze
J2 when photographing artwork, one has to do something special to make it their own creation. this image has good exposure and sharpness but is a record shot, documenting a sculpture and, although technically is well done, is unremarkable. Consider getting lower to shoot it at the subjects#039; eye-level.
Mystic Tree 21.5 BPP Stewart Leese Pictorial Bronze
J1 Very interesting tree subject for the image. Good choice of depth of filed to show some detail of tree trunk. Tree is central which makes it appear more static than dynamic. Consider moving tree off centre to right, by adding canvass to frame. Consider adding some contrast to image to make the tree stand out. Darken the ground at base of tree. Brush or darken the trunk and places or branches so it is not as uniform as it appears.
Solitaire 23.5 Ed Espin Pictorial Master
J3 This image has an interesting composition that strengthens the impact. Technically it is well done with good exposure, sharpness and contrast. The subjects hands may have become a stronger element if the maker had increased their exposure.
fern island 20.5 Carey Hope Pictorial Gold
J1 Central but well chosen composition for the ferns. Very nice reflection with the detail showing, then fading. The exposure on the fern island is very good. Depth of field chosen while showing detail of ferns is good, allows for too much detail background. Therefor fern island stands out because of the dark gradient. Suggest adding a slight gaussian blur layer to background. The lighten the opacity of the gradient layer so it is not as pronounced. J2 the vignette is too strong/dark; image is not level (tilts down to the right slightly). rocks appear to be too pink.
Rose Portrait 19.5 John Bunyon Pictorial Gold
J2 lighting is rather good. this type of image needs something to be sharp in focus and that is lacking in this photo. merger with the left petal should be avoided by including all of that petal to improve the composition.
Old shed 17.5 Stewart Leese Pictorial Bronze
J1 Check image for color correction (white balance); green in clouds. J2 good sharpness in this image. the colour is not natural looking with too much green and the wrong blue in the sky.
Oakville Pier 21.5 BPP Robert Segarra Pictorial Bronze
J1 Very good implied story (or two) with image. Focus is excellent. Contrast in exposure between pier and sky adds interest. Reds of lighthouse (top) parka and life rings adds to dynamic. Question. What is the strength of the image, people or angry sky? Image maker chose to have sky at normal horizon level, so assume it is important to image. Doing so diminishes importance of people on pier. Consider making either sky or people more prominent by cropping. Crop out some of pier makes sky more import
Trio 20.5 Graham Jardine Pictorial Gold
J1 Good color contrast with leaves against the decay of the log. There is an implied story of dying or end of season; good. The depth of field chosen shows much detail, perhaps too much. The elements of the image are not moving, so consider making an image where background, i.e. the log is out of focus, and leaves are sharp. This could be accomplished in post by masking the leaves and adding a slight gaussian to the log.
Gerbera Daisy 20.5 Don Poulton Pictorial Master
J2 wonderfully sharp on the main subject and great exposure. crop to eliminate the out-of-focus petals in the bottom left as the eye is drawn to those and away from the centre of the flower.
Jo#039;s Basketball Win 19.5 Cherylene Stimers Pictorial Bronze
J2 good capture of the emotion. this type of photojournalistic image would be better to not crop through the feet or arms. I know, it#039;s capturing a moment but with experience one will position themselves to avoid that type of crop and maybe even include the scoreboard showing both teams' scores to add to the story.
Forth Rail Bridge 18.5 James Hamilton Pictorial Gold
J2 very contrasty. looks like a scan of an old slide or negative. details in the bridge are lost. J3 The composition having the bridge drawing the viewer into the image is well done. Having a foreground element would have strengthened the impact. Technically there is a lot of noise and the image is quite soft. This is perhaps due to a large crop off the original shot.
La Diana Cazadora MX 22 BPP Robert Segarra Pictorial Bronze
J3 Although this is an image of someone else#039;s art the composition is so compelling that the impact is outstanding. The maker made decisions (angle, crop, background and post processing to name a few) that created this beautiful work of art.
Scottish Highlands 21 James Hamilton Pictorial Gold
J2 nice composition with the roads snaking across the foreground and through the right side. the images is a bit flat from an exposure perspective. there#039;s a lot of colour noise in the sky (magenta, green, cyan) that's a little unpleasant in quality.
Taughannock Falls 22.5 Andy Langs Pictorial Gold
J2 a light bit of dehazing the lighter areas of the rocks might improve this image slightly. lovely scene of these falls in Ithaca, NY. J3 The composition would have been strengthened with a foreground element. Technically the DOF, sharpness and exposure are well done. The bright sky at the top might have been altered in post as it draws the viewer right out the image.
Parallelism 23.5 Ed Espin Pictorial Master
J2 interesting creation with lots of depth. might be improved with layer masking to blend the objects less harshly with the next layer, especially on the sides of the vertical objects. looks like the maker had fun creating this image.
Milkweed 19.5 Heather Engel Nature Master
J2 this image has good aspects. beautiful lighting. good composition. unfortunate that nothing seems sharp. would suggest either sharpening it in post processing or using a paint filter and create an artistic image where the sharpness is immaterial in a painterly image.
Mute Swan 22 BPP Stewart Leese Nature Bronze
J1 Although the composition is tight in the frame (foreground/background) it is timed well to have both swans completely in the image. Gesture of each swans with left and right webbed feet lifted is excellent timing. Although focus is on foreground swan, DoF could be greater (perhaps f8) for background swan to be more clear. Suggest exposure be increase at least 1/2 stop to lighten the whole of image.
Rooted.. 19 Dean Hughes Nature Bronze
J1 Very carefully composed and thoughtful image, with space on left of image for roots to leave the frame on the soil. Roots do not leave the image at the corners, which is good. Root at top centre touches edge and is cut off. Exposure is too even overall, making the image appear less than dynamic. Suggest using a brush to darken/add contrast to some of streaks in rock. Color is muted without much contrast. Suggest adding more blue to top rock edge and color to orange in soil.
White Throated Sparrow 21.5 Andy Langs Nature Gold
J3 The bird is well composed in the image. Perhaps a gentle vignette may have been utilized. The bird is technically well done; it#039;s all sharp with good tones, contrast and exposure. The image lacks a strong story.
Red-winged blackbird 25.5 TC GPP Geoffrey Skirrow Nature Gold
J1 Bird is well placed in frame. Exposure is very good to capture most of the black feather detail and shoulder patches. Shutter speed excellent to capture the R-W blackbird calling. Image made at the eye level of bird. Very good. Consider bringing out a slight bit more detail in black below breast. Consider lightening the reed left of bird.
Barred Owl 19.5 Dean Hughes Nature Bronze
J1 Nice specimen of barred owl and feather pattern. Exposure is good on owl. Location where image made is natural but very busy. which impedes the viewer#039;s eye. Owls eye is not quite focused; appears to be a depth of field issue with sharpest focus point at lower of tree and tail feathers. Suggest using Topaz AI to sharpen eye. Background is very distracting. J2 pixelization is visible all around the subject.
Cooper#039;s Hawk 20.5 Laura Nelson Nature Bronze
J1 Good composition with Cooper#039;s Hawk and prey, good action in the bird's environment. Nice color and detail of the hawk displayed. Good eye level image. Image made in flat light and under exposed. Suggest bringing up exposure by 1 stop, perhaps more. As well as adding some contrast to the scene. J2 good nature story but the image is very soft in focus.
Snowy Egret 23 HM BPP Laura Nelson Nature Bronze
J1 Very good composition, in outstanding light. Great gesture of bird with the egrets talons, as well as the minnow in beak. The golden light plays off the sand and water to provide a frame for the egret. Good range of blacks and whites with image exposure. Image made at eye height level with non obtrusive background.
Urban Red Tail Hawk 21 BPP Dean Hughes Nature Bronze
J2 good eye contact with the viewer. soft lighting is nice because there are no harsh shadows. there#039;s a fair amount of colour noise in this image. slight improvement would be to sharpen the eyes, as the focus appears to be sharpen on the beak.
Brockton Point Lighthouse 21 Don Poulton Creative Master
J1 Interesting and well done paint application to the image background. Suggest the image maker remove the sign on door; in CS select sign then (Edit, Fill, Content Aware). The sign is a significant distraction to the image.
water colour 2 20.5 Carey Hope Creative Gold
J1 Very good color contrast with the shades of golds and blues. Motion from top left to bottom right shows flow. The three darker areas provide good tonal contrast, and form a pleasant triangle which keeps the eye within the frame. Pleasant, thoughtful composition. Suggest the image maker consider adding some overall contrast to the image; to bring out more detail. Suggest burning the right very bottom corner to contain the eye, as it is in upper left.
Looking up and Down 23 GPP John King Creative Gold
J1 Composition with angle of eagle in frame adds to dynamic of image, appears almost over powering. The dark (blacks without blocking up) and light application adds to the power. The filter application (just under the bird#039;s wing, right side) could be smoothed similar to that lower on the wing.
Pok?mon 18 John Bunyon Creative Gold
J1 Good idea. Although the composition with the dark spots (a triangle) works because of tonal contrast, the image is under exposed 1 - 1/2 stops except for the lighter area bottom right. This draws the eye down to the brighter area. With CS or LR suggest masking the bright areas, then bring up the exposure of the rest of image. The image is soft (is this intended?) The image may have more impact if sharper at front. Recommend a hi pass soft light sharpen in CS or Topaz AI plug in (if you have it).
Dreamy Field 23 Leonie Holmes_FCAPA Creative Master
J1 Very beautiful, tranquil image. Excellent color contrast. There are a few black spots on upper right of image, and black line on left about 25 down from top of image that could be removed. In a print of this image these areas would be distracting.
