Heavenly Aspens
Maker: Brian Narveson -- 35 points 1st Place Judge's comments: Nice color and exposure; plain blue sky is a great background; sharp; has a circular feel Maker's comments: Image was taken on the road up to the top of Pikes Peak near Colorado Springs. Camera was handheld with an 18mm lens. Mode was aperture priority set at f/10 for depth of field. I used ISO 800 to get a fast enough shutter speed for handheld. Resulting speed was 1/640 sec.
Nuthatch
Maker: Doyle Gates -- 35 points 2nd Place Judge's comments: Good composition; the diagonal branch leads in; bird is well-exposed; good bokeh; no catch light in the eye; the branch behind the head is distracting Maker's comments:
Monarch
Maker: Mike Hanson -- 34 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Nice composition; good lighting; color seems subdued Maker's comments:
Dragonfly Dancer
Maker: Wanda Finn -- 34 points 3rd Place Judge's comments: Very sharp; great detail in the wings; nice color; good diagonal lines Maker's comments:
Avocet
Maker: John Zoerb -- 33 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Great exposure; nice stop action; accurate color; room to move; whites might be a little hot Maker's comments:
bad hair day
Maker: Jerry Weigel -- 33 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Great catch; good bokeh; very nice color; eye is sharp; the whites are a little hot Maker's comments:
Milkweed
Maker: Shirley Gates -- 33 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Very sharp; good highlights; nice lighting; good background Maker's comments:
Goldeneye Taking Off
Maker: Al Sheldon -- 31 points Judge's comments: Great stop action; excellent color; pretty reflection but would like to see the entire wing; needs a little more room to move on the right Maker's comments:
Oxbow Bend
Maker: Austin Miller -- 31 points Judge's comments: Amazing impact; nice atmospheric effect; river is a great leading line Maker's comments:
Leaf Jumper
Maker: Debbie -- 31 points Voted Acc. Judge's comments: The details in the side of the body are excellent; great color; lovely background colors; very narrow depth of field Maker's comments:
Golden Hills
Maker: Eileen Roesler -- 31 points Judge's comments: Nice curve in the river; pretty color; Cropping down from the top would emphasize the height of the hills Maker's comments:
Cave Salamander on Cliff Wall
Maker: Al Sheldon -- 28 points Judge's comments: Good capture of the color and slime of the salamander; nice s-curve; image lacks pop Maker's comments:
Autumn's Beauty
Maker: Phyllis Feiock -- 28 points Judge's comments: Very nice fall color; the right side would make a nice vertical Maker's comments:
Underwater Leaf
Maker: Kristi Olson -- 27 points Judge's comments: Great composition; stem is a nice leading line with an s-curve; very sharp; a colored leaf would add considerable pop Maker's comments:
Home
Maker: John Schilling -- 26 points Judge's comments: Nice color; if the bug is the center of interest, it could be prominent in the image; if the tree was cut down, that would be hand of man Maker's comments:
Whooping Crane's Balancing Act
Maker: Sonja Haske -- 26 points Judge's comments: Nice composition; room to move; reflection leads to bird; not quite sharp Maker's comments:
Natures Fall Painting
Maker: Mary Ann Roesler -- 25 points Judge's comments: Nice fall foliage; some pretty colors; might focus on a smaller area of the image; the right side could have been a vertical Maker's comments: