Whisky Still Abstract 6 8 8.5 22.5 James Hamilton Pictorial Gold
J1 The image has nice colours and lines but it is not obvious to the viewer what the subject is. The title does not help clarify this. The maker may wish to consider putting an abstract in creative M5 EF-M18-150mm f/3.5-6.3 IS STM 1/800 sec F16.0 ISO 4000 FL 74
Full Bloom 6 7 8 21 Patrick Mohide Pictorial Gold
J1 The pink tree shows the viewer some nice colour and the tree has an interesting shape but the centre composition doesn't enhance the composition resulting in a record shot. The very busy background distracts from the beauty of the tree. The harsh light detracts from the impact. The maker may wish to try shooting at a time of day when the light is softer and not so harsh. J2 Would have liked more room at the top. Found the light harsh with deep shadows somewhat distracting otherwise a very interesting image. J3 great lighting but the fence behind it is a strong distraction. With work, softening the background with a selective blur might improve it considerably SONY ILCE-7RM2 FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS 1/125 sec F8.0 ISO 160 FL 32
Yukon Wildernis 7.5 7 7.5 22 SPP Riana Vermaak Pictorial Silver
J1 The image has a nice mood to it and the river starts to take the viewer into the scene, but then on the curve takes us out of the frame. If the maker could include more of the river on the left side it would improve the composition.
Try to avoid the hot sky on the top left. NIKON D7200 16.0-35.0 mm f/4.0 1/160 sec F11.0 ISO 320 FL 18
Port Dover Queen 7.5 7.5 9 24 GPP Bertin Francoeur Pictorial Gold
J1 This image has very nice lighting , the sunglasses a very prominent, the image may be better if the maker could persuade the model to take the sunglasses off, to reveal her eyes.
A 1 pixel stroke around the edge would help define the edges of the image J2 A thin white border would enhance this image SONY ILCE-7RM3 FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS 1/640 sec F4.0 ISO 200 FL 129
Chrysanthemum_Up_Close 5.5 7.5 6 19 Caroline Way Pictorial Bronze
J1 Not enough of the flower is in focus. When working up close the maker needs to be sure they enough depth of field to get more of the blossom in focus. Try using a smaller aperture and maybe focus stacking to improve depth of field PENTAX PENTAX K-30 13/10 sec F14.0 ISO 800 FL 70
Mum Bouquet 7 7.5 6.5 21 James Hamilton Pictorial Gold
J3 A still life should be sharp throughout with good technique but this has a lot of very soft areas where the details are blurry for no apparent reason. Olympus IMAGING CORP. E-M5MarkII Olympus M.12-40mm F2.8 1/800 sec F9.0 ISO 1600 FL 25
Maria On Tundra 7 7 7.5 21.5 Peter Bartens Pictorial Master
J1 The makers title draws the viewers attention to Maria. Maria is a minor element in the image. If the maker titled the image to draw the viewers attention to the lovely fall tundra colours, Maria would then be a supporting element to the image. When the title makes maria the main element, the viewer then realizes we can't see her face or other fine details about her NIKON D800 1/400 sec F13.0 ISO 800 FL 70
Cooper'S Hawk With Prey. 7 7.5 8 22.5 SPP Geoffrey Skirrow Pictorial Silver
J1 Based on your club rules this is weak in category and should have been entered in nature.
In the proper category it would score higher J3 Doesn't this belong in your nature category?
"Images that appear to meet our nature criteria cannot be entered in pictorial." 7D Mark II EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM 1/1000 sec F8.0 ISO 250 FL 400
Cabana Door 7 8 7.5 22.5 Graham Jardine Pictorial Gold
J1 The image show the decay of the door, but overall the image is weak on impact. The exposure is well done to show all the detail in the door. Maybe by showing more of the door viewers would understand why the maker choose the door Olympus E-M1MarkII Olympus M.12-40mm F2.8 1/200 sec F5.0 ISO 400 FL 40
The Pieta By Michelangelo 6 7 6 19 Patrick Mohide Pictorial Gold
J1 The exposure of the statue is handled fairly good. When we make an image of someone else's art, we need to add something into the scene to make the statue an element in the makers composition and story.
Because the statue is the only element the viewer can see, it becomes weak in category.
The black heads in the foreground are also a distraction SONY ILCE-7RM2 FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS 1/125 sec F8.0 ISO 4000 FL 70
Build The Wall . 6.5 6.5 7.5 20.5 Chris Vermaak Pictorial Silver
J1 Based on your club rules this is weak in category and should have been entered in nature J3 "Images that appear to meet our nature criteria cannot be entered in pictorial." NIKON D810 Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR 1/250 sec F16.0 ISO 200 FL 130
Valley Boardwalk 7 7.5 6.5 21 Carey Hope Pictorial Silver
J3 Lovely scene in which your eye is drawn to the S curve of the boardwalk. Toning is rather muddy looking; trying using curves to give more life to the tonal range. A slightly better angle might have been to move to the left of the edge of the boardwalk to not have it so central in the frame. NIKON D750 1/160 sec F20.0 ISO 200 FL 42
Fishermen 5.5 7 7 19.5 Marino Favretto Pictorial Bronze
J1 A good capture of 2 friends together with a good reflection. The men however are not sharp J3 Nice story. Tone down the bright rock, give a little more room on the left. Nice composition otherwise, especially with the reflection. 7D EF70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM 1/500 sec F5.6 ISO 100 FL 300
Arthur Ravenel Bridge 8.5 9 10 27.5 TC GPP Judy Boufford Pictorial Gold
J1 The is a good example of being at t he right place at the right time then using capture skills to get the correct exposure. Elongating the exposure gives the clouds a nice look, which serve as a good background element NIKON D7500 10.0-20.0 mm f/4.0-5.6 25 sec F16.0 ISO 100 FL 20
Apache_Trail 6.5 7.5 7 21 BPP Caroline Way Pictorial Bronze
J3 The dark sky and high contrast clouds gives the impression of it being an infrared image. The composition could be improved a bit by taking care to not have a small white triangle in the bottom left corner and perhaps a bit less of the road. PENTAX PENTAX K-30 1/100 sec F11.0 ISO 100 FL 21.3
Blackrock Cottage, Scotland 9 7 8.5 24.5 GPP Kathryn Martin Pictorial Gold
J1 This is a beautiful image. The maker has used good composition technique for the main elements in the frame. Exposure and colour along with an interesting foreground , middle ground and background draw the viewers eyes into the image. The colours are well handled.
All of the pieces together create a mood that gives impact SONY ILCE-7RM3 FE 24-105mm F4 G OSS 1/640 sec F13.0 ISO 1250 FL 24
Breakfast Is Served 7 7.5 7.5 22 SPP Peter Chow Pictorial Silver
J1 A good story but the image is weak in the pictorial category and should be in nature.
Try to avoid the blown out white on the head J3 question eligibility: "Images that appear to meet our nature criteria cannot be entered in pictorial." REBEL T4i 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM | Contemporary 015 1/250 sec F11.0 ISO 800 FL 600
Black Madonna 6 6 6 18 Ian Porszt Pictorial Gold
J3 Good use of the rule of thirds for the composition. Can't help but feeling that there's more detail than we are seeing. Not sure if that's texture in the orangy-red areas or a lot of digital noise. SONY DSC-H50 1/60 sec F4.0 ISO 400 FL 47.6
Dark Alley 5.5 7 7.5 20 Patrick Mohide Pictorial Gold
J1 The maker has a great idea with the camera low to the ground to create depth but the shadows should show more details, by increasing the exposure in the shadows. SONY ILCE-7RM2 FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS 1/200 sec F5.6 ISO 65535 FL 48
Puffins 8 7.5 7.5 23 GPP Graham Jardine Pictorial Gold
J1 This is a very good capture of the puffins. The maker has ensured they had sufficient depth of field to get them all in focus. J3 Would think this really belongs in your nature category.
"Images that appear to meet our nature criteria cannot be entered in pictorial."
Birds could be sharper. -1D Mark II 1/500 sec F6.7 ISO 200 FL 280
Pink Poinsettia Detail 7.5 8 6.5 22 Terry Ross-Poulton Pictorial Gold
J3 more depth of field would improve this still life image. When the subject is still, you have the opportunity to use a greater DOF or focus stack. having the front 1/3 of the image out of focus prevents one from getting past the OOF elements and enjoying the rest of the photo. DIGITAL REBEL XTi 1/100 sec F8.0 ISO 800 FL 49
A Cool Day In San Diego 6 6.5 6.5 19 Roy Oldfield Pictorial Gold
J1 There was an opportunity here to capture a good image of the lady. The maker has cropped or captured her too tight. The cutoff hands make for an awkward look. The sunglasses hide the eyes which are important for an image like this and overall the focus is soft and should be sharper. J3 Good exposure and sharp. Recommended to avoid cropping off part of a subject's hand or finger. Panasonic DMC-ZS45 1/250 sec F7.1 ISO 100 FL 24.4
Weaving A Mat 6 7.5 6.5 20 Roy Oldfield Pictorial Gold
J3 Image is reasonably sharp and well exposed. Getting lower to take this shot would have created a better angle from which to see her face. Standing up and shooting from this perspective makes it a record shot. Panasonic DMC-ZS50 1/250 sec F3.6 ISO 80 FL 5.8
Love 6 6.5 6 18.5 Roy Oldfield Pictorial Gold
J3 Better composition would have been to not crop so tightly; this looks more like a quick snapshot rather than a well composed image. Panasonic DMC-ZS45 1/100 sec F6.3 ISO 320 FL 27.6
Pink Thistle 7 6 6.5 19.5 Judy Moniz Pictorial Silver
J3 good saturation of colour. a bit tight in the frame with the merger on the right. a little more DOF to get the front of the flower in focus would be better. NIKON D3300 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 1/500 sec F6.3 ISO 400 FL 170
Red Squirrel 8.5 7.5 8 24 GPP Jim Thomson Nature Gold
J1 This is a beautiful handled exposure sharp.
The maker may wish to try showing a bit less rock on the bottom and reduce some negative space on the top and open up the left side a bit more. More of a square crop may create a better visual balance.
The very natural look of the fur makes this a nice nature image.
American Lady Butterfly 5.5 7 5.5 18 John Strung Nature Gold
J1 The butterfly is well composed in the frame but very little of the insect is in focus.
So much of the frame is not sharp that it suggest a depth of field issue. Try using a smaller aperture to increase DOF J3 front eye is in focus but to be successful, a greater DOF is required to have more of the subject in focus Olympus E-M1MarkII M.300mm F4.0 + MC-14 1/800 sec F7.1 ISO 640 FL 420
Green Heron 5.5 6.5 6 18 Dan Copeland Nature Master
J1 The bird is nicely placed in the frame with a bit of a story, but it is not correctly exposed in the bright and dark areas.
Try to avoid the bright specular highlights in the background 7D Mark II 753/1000000 sec F7.0 ISO 1000 FL 400
Great Blue Heron 9.5 8.5 8 26 TC GPP Pat Wintemute Nature Gold
J1 This is a beautiful image of the heron taking off. The water splash add to the story. The wings are exposed perfectly and they are sharp. The background water is natural but not distracting and the colours make the heron pop. A minor flaw in this great image is the small white spot on the cheek is a bit hot 70D EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM 1/1600 sec F5.6 ISO 320 FL 278
Four-Toothed Mason Wasp 7.5 7.5 7.5 22.5 Colleen Bird Nature Gold
J1 A good capture on the wasps body and left wing. The right wing and the blossom the wasp is on is out of focus. For a higher score try to increase your depth of field by using a smaller aperture and less focal length then crop later Olympus E-M1MarkII Olympus M.40-150mm F4.0-5.6 R 1/1250 sec F5.6 ISO 800 FL 150
Yellow Warbler 5.5 7.5 7 20 Herb McClelland Nature Silver
J1 The warbler is not in focus. Since nothing is in focus in the image, it suggest motion blur . Make sure you shoot with a higher shutter speed to get sharp shots and or a steady platform like a tripod NIKON D500 80.0-400.0 mm f/4.5-5.6 1/1600 sec F8.0 ISO 800 FL 550
Great Grey Owl 7.5 7 8 22.5 Jim Sykes Nature Gold
J2 Well exposed and nice and sharp.
Unfortunately the naming is incorrect. This is a Barred Owl. Would of liked to have seen the whole tail and a more subdued background would of improved the image. 5D Mark IV EF70-200mm f/4L IS USM 1/100 sec F6.3 ISO 1600 FL 200
Great Egret 5 7.5 8 20.5 Brian Floyd Nature Gold
J1 We need to be very careful with back lit white birds. The edges of the bird are over exposed and the shadow side of the bird is under exposed and has no details. The specular highlights in the fore ground are distracting. the maker could try using a low power flash to expose the visible side of the bird correctly J2 Interesting image however the circular highlights in the frame and on the subject are distractions from the main subject. J3 Love the backlighting and pose. There's an overspill of specular highlights on the bird. Olympus E-M1X Olympus M.300mm F4.0 1/400 sec F4.0 ISO 200 FL 300
Blue Dasher Dragonfly 6.5 7 8.5 22 SPP Geoffrey Skirrow Nature Silver
J1 Nice capture for the foreground dragonfly. The dragonfly in the back ground is out of focus and quite distracting and overlaps the main subject. Try taking just the one dragonfly on the stick and increase the exposure in the dark areas 7D Mark II EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM 1/1000 sec F9.0 ISO 400 FL 400
Great Blue Heron 7 6.5 5 18.5 Gary Love Nature Master
J1 The image has an over processed look and there fore does not look natural. The image would look better if the maker backed off the sharpening a bit J3 added texture filter poorly done and not natural looking on what could have been a great photograph with great sharpness and exposure. 7D Mark II EF300mm f/2.8L IS USM +2x III 1/2500 sec F8.0 ISO 400 FL 600
Ring Billed Gull 7 7 6 20 Gary Love Nature Master
J1 This image has a good story and very nice colours but it is over processed and as a result doesn't look natural.
The maker can improve the image by backing off on the over sharpening J3 Great timing and pose and nature story but this image gives the impression that a filter has been added to increase and enhance the texture and isn't natural looking. 7D Mark II EF300mm f/2.8L IS USM +2x III 1/2500 sec F8.0 ISO 400 FL 600
Dead Vlei 2 7.5 8 7 22.5 SPP Chris Vermaak Nature Silver
J3 looks like a great place to photograph but probably better early or late in the day or else enhance the image with more interesting lighting or treatment. The lighting is very flat and uninteresting in this image. NIKON D750 Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR 1/160 sec F11.0 ISO 400 FL 102
Bearded Seal 6.5 7.5 5.5 19.5 Ewa Rakowski Nature Silver
J3 great subject but unfortunately the focus is soft. try sharpening in post processing because it looks like there might be enough detail to fix this image and make it much better.
NIKON D7100 1/400 sec F6.3 ISO 320 FL 300
J3 nice try but it needed a faster shutter speed. You also need to clean your sensor because the sky is full of ugly sensor spots. PENTAX Corporation PENTAX K10D 1/125 sec F27.0 ISO 400 FL 45
Bald Eagles Feeding 5.5 7.5 6 19 Peter Bartens Nature Master
J1 There is a great story here butt the highlights are blown out and the dark areas are under exposed, so there are no details in the birds feathers. The image was taken in very harsh lighting conditions. Try taking an image like this in early morning or late day light or o a cloudy day. For a shot like this you really want the light source to be behind you , so it lights the birds. NIKON D500 1/1600 sec F7.1 ISO 800 FL 420
White Cheeked Pintail 7.5 7.5 7.5 22.5 David Seldon Nature Master
J1 This is nice image with a great reflection To get a higher score avoid the the blown out white on the cheeks. The red lore is also over exposed J3 is there any detail to be brought out in the white cheek? The rest of the image is lovely and sharp. 7D Mark II EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM 1/2000 sec F5.6 ISO 800 FL 400
Palm Warbler 7 7.5 7.5 22 Jim Thomson Nature Gold
J1 The warbler is beautifully exposed but it is a bit centred in the frame. It appears to be over sharpened which doesn't look natural. try to avoid distracting backgrounds J3 bird has been oversharpened
Predawn At The Pier 9.5 7.5 7.5 24.5 GPP Geoff Dunn Creative Gold
J3 First of all, this is a nicely composed and exposed image to begin with. The addition of the starbursts is appropriate, although they have artifacts around them so they don't work as well as they would without those outlines. 5D Mark III EF24-105mm f/4L IS II USM F8.0 ISO 200 FL 24
