Our judge this evening was Justin Cliffe, a successful street and travel photographer from Woking. Justin is a new judge on the circuit. Did he feel inhibited by the presence of his mentor Rosemary in the audience? Probably not. He started by acknowledging that different judges would be likely to give different assessments and that he could only say which pictures appealed to him. We all know that, of course.
There were 6 prints in the Standard class and 21 in the Advanced. I have to say that both members who entered the Standard class have very competent control of their chosen media, so hopefully next season they will be joining the Advanced group and no doubt embarrass the rest of us by how well they do.
The winning image in the Standard class was Ann Marie by Paul. Justin said this was a girl with attitude, well-posed and smiling – happy to be photographed. A fashionista! The background set the scene nicely. He also complimented on the way the print had been framed and mounted.
Second in this class, again by Paul was Auntie Brenda’s Rice. We’re getting used to Paul’s cryptic titles, aren’t we? In this picture, the subject looked a little anxious but again the image was beautifully produced, the eye being drawn backwards and forwards between him and the background artwork. Well caught.
Third was Hill-Billy Heaven by Martin. A nicely put together image with an interesting promotional ukulele. Good tones and colours and the background works well.
Streets of Old Italy by Martin was Highly Commended. A well-produced black and white image with a touch of colour to pick out the person in the street. Very good tonal rendering throughout. He recommended a tighter crop at the top to reduce the amount of sky which distracted a little from the subject. Arguable?
The winning image in the Advanced class was Adrift by Dave S. Justin said this had a 17th to 18th century painterly look. It had some wonderful tones and colours and the overall soft effect produced a relaxing feel to the image.
Second in this class was Rocky Mountain High by Brian. The composition was very effective anchored as it was by the woodland bottom left. He liked the repetition of the mountain peaks that change colour as your eye moves across the frame. A well processed image.
Third was Migraine Attack by David P. Justin had never had migraine himself and although not appreciating the attempt to replicate the intrusive ‘aura’ that accompanies one, felt the image unusual enough to hold back.
The first image to be Highly Commended was Belle Tout by Dave S. He applauded the photographer for his added-value interpretation of a very familiar viewpoint of Beachy Head.
The other Highly Commended image was Yellow for the eye by David M. He commented that whoever used these coloured pencils was particular in the way they worked and the whole composition was very well put together, the eye being drawn to the sketch in the corner. A nice story.
Justin Commended Demoiselle Crane Preening by Mandy. The bird stood out well from the dark background and showed excellent tonal rendering of the details in its feathers. Excellent technical quality.
Congratulations to all our award winners and to everyone for the very high standard of work entered. Thank you to Justin, and we hope he goes from strength to strength in adjudicating the efforts of club photographers in the future.
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