Photo Contest-March '11-results!

[Call_Me_Bob]

sorry this took so long. i had a busy month, and i wasnt even in the country for part of it. but here are the results. better late than never!

what are your opinions on keeping the contests going? ill be fine keeping organizing it, and i know we all learn alot, but im not sure how much interest there is. whats your take?

ADVANCED

1. Val- Love this shot. The framing and the lighting are really nice. However, I feel like the shot could have been sharper.
2. Val- This is a really nice shot. The lighting is nice but the framing feels a little off. I think it could be improved by zooming out to include a tiny bit more on the top and bottom and cropping in some on the sides.
3. Val- This one is very good. I like the dynamic lighting but I think it could be lightened up a little. This image might be one that would print well but doesn’t come across well on screen.
4. kavanaru- Great picture. The framing and lighting on this shot are really nice, but I would like to have seen a little more light on the bloom itself. Also, I would burn out the background elements on the right hand side. (as a note: I had a hard time judging this series of photos with the copyright text across them. It was hard to see the beauty of this photo until I covered the copyright info with my hand as it really pulled focus from the image. I understand the desire to protect your images, but you might want to consider something somewhat less obtrusive.)
5. kavanaru- Love the drama of this photo with the black flowers against the white background and the lighting was very good, but maybe a little tighter crop would have been beneficial. For some reason I wasn’t as drawn to it as I feel like I should have been.
6. kavanaru- This is a good photo, but feels a little flat compared to the other two from this entrant. I don’t mind the slight texture in the background, but I think that the upper right corner should have been burned in to create a little bit of a vignette effect.
7. camille1585- This is such a happy photo. I love effect of the glowing flowers as the light is transmitted through them. This photo would have been improved with a shallower depth of field. Everything is in focus and I think the image would have more drama if a small section of the flowers was in focus and the trees and some of the other flowers and stems were allowed to go soft.
8. eyebabe- These are beautiful flowers and the framing on the photo is nice. However, the lighting is dark and very flat. The white flowers almost appear grey. It looks like it was probably lit with a flash that had a hard time metering on the white flowers. It would benefit from more light, preferably filtered or bounced off something to cut down on harsh shadows.
9. eyebabe- Love the intense color on this photo and all of the detail. The lighting looks harsh- (maybe direct flash used too close to the plant). Also the depth of field is problematic. The areas that are supposed to draw our focus (the frilly front section of the flower and the light centers) are out of focus while the background petals are in sharp focus.
10. eyebabe- This is the best entry from this person. The lighting is nice and the depth of field is great. I love how the front flowers are sharp and then the other fall out of focus as they move away from us. I think I would have cropped it in to remove the flower in the background that pulls the eye to the right.
11. Connie Star- Great photo and great use of dynamic lighting. Love how sharp it is and the composition with a little bit of leaf sticking up at the bottom. My only problem with the image is that it feels too centered. I keep thinking that it could stand to have some of the left side cropped off, but I think you might loose some of that petal. I’m not sure how I would crop it differently, but it feels unbalanced.
12. Connie Star- A great technical photo, but it fails to grab my attention. Maybe more dramatic lighting or a shallow depth of field would increase interest.
13. Connie Star- Love this photo. I framing, depth of field, lighting are all fantastic. I don’t think this one could be improved. If I were to get really nit-picky I think I would blur the bottom left corner where a background petal is in sharp focus, but that’s really reaching.
14. camille1585- I love the detail in the petals on this photo. The composition and the lighting are both a little flat. I think by adding a little space above the top flower and with more directional lighting this photo could be made even better. Try using a white piece of paper to bounce a little light back to certain areas to highlight the contours more.
15. jane eyre- Looking at this photo on the screen it didn’t jump out at me, but the printed thumbnail version that I made for reference while I was judging did a better job of catching my attention. I think maybe it could use some more contrast and I wish the background foliage was more out of focus. However, I really like the leading lines of the branches in the background which didn’t really come across on screen.
16. jane eyre- I like this photo and it is an interesting flower. The depth of field is great and I love how point of focus is on the bottom part of the flower which is where the eye is naturally drawn. I think it could use a little more contrast and a tighter crop. I also would burn in the background to make it darker so that the flower stands out a bit more.
17. jane eyre- This is a nice photo. I would have cropped it in a little closer. Although I really like the green color of the background, the texture is a little distracting and I think a closer crop would eliminate some of that. It could also use a little more contrast or some more extra highlights to bring out the contours.
18. help- This is a great photo. Very nice use of shallow depth of field to highlight the one flower. I would have cropped it in a little closer on the right and a lot closer on the left to eliminate some of those bright spots (skylights?) that draw attention from the subject. I think I would also burn in the background a little to really make the primary flower pop.
19. help- I like this image. Again, it is a good use of shallow depth of field to really isolate the subject. However, it is a little dark. I would brighten it up enough to make the whites a true white and that should make the flower pop a little more. I think I would also crop it in a little bit closer.
20. help- This photo didn’t stand out to me as much as the other two from this entrant. I think it is the Monochromatic flowers and background. Even though the lighting is good and the depth of field is good it still seems very flat. I would make this a black and white photo. The drama of the shapes and the repeating patterns would really come across beautifully in black and white.

1st place- #13 by Connie Star- Tulip
2nd place- #4 by kavanaru- Paphiopedilum Muriel Constance
3rd place- #1 by Val- Phalaenopsis Golden Mistress

BEGINNER

1. ysa- This is a great photo with nice lighting. All three of these photos have a very dramatic look. I would crop this one in a little on the sides. Also, I’m not a fan of the stem disappearing before the edge of the photo.
2. ysa- Again, great photo. This one might benefit from a slight crop. I would like the stem to continue to the edge of the photo, and I would try to crop out the little leaf that pops up at the bottom.
3. ysa- Another good photo. This one is cropped too close at the top and could use a tighter crop at the bottom and sides. The lighting on this one seems a little flat.
4. BlazingAugust- Love that orange! Try getting closer to the subject to isolate it from the background. If you can’t get closer try to shoot from an angle where the background is consistant. The White wall in the upper right corner is distracting.
5. nenella- Love the soft colors and the shallow depth of field on this one. A different crop or angle might have made this one a little stronger.
6. Hedge- Nice photo. I would like to have seem it framed so that the bottom petal was not cut off. The busy background takes away from the flowers, so I might crop it in on the sides to eliminate some of the background.
7. Hedge- This is a really beautiful photo. I like the composition with the rose framed by the buds. The shallow depth of field makes the rose stand out. To take it to the next level I would try to soften the leaves even more.

1st- Hedge- #7- Mdme Alfred Carriere Rose
2nd- ysa- #2- Dpts. 'DF10 Starbust'
3rd- nenella- #5- Medinilla magnifica


congrats to the winners! make sure you enter the calendar contest!

[JaneEyre]

Congrats to the winners!

Thank you for organizing this contest. I had fun looking for photos to submit and it is always nice to get some feedback so I can improve my skills. Thanks

[Eyebabe]

Awesome feedback for the pictures and definitely a lot of work!
Gratz to the winners

[Call_Me_Bob]

so far we have 7 for continuing and against it.

[Ysa]

Thank you!!

[harleymc]

Untill I read this thread I had no idea there was a photo contest. I may well be one of many users who had no idea there was a photo competition. So If it is to be continued it might be an idea to put a link on the front page to it.
On the same note as links - where is the link to the photos that were judged, and to a "how to enter"/ FAQs for the competition?

[Call_Me_Bob]

i probably wont end up continueing it. i've gotten to busy. thanks to all who have participated and sorry to those who were excited about the next contest. in the future, i would be happy to assist someone, but i just cant do it all again.

[camille1585]

How about making this a winter thing? Kept us busy over the winter when there wasn't much to do. Now with spring/summer I think many people are too busy.

[Call_Me_Bob]

Originally Posted by camille1585

How about making this a winter thing? Kept us busy over the winter when there wasn't much to do. Now with spring/summer I think many people are too busy.

good idea. it would still help if someone else would like to help