Hinging Together
Maker: Mary Ann Roesler -- 38 points 1st Place Judge's comments: Great color and technique; can see many faces in the image; very unique; lots of impact Maker's comments:
Cocoa and Candy Canes
Maker: Kristi Olson -- 38 points 2nd Place Judge's comments: All the whites are distinguishable; good, simple composition; hot chocolate looks good enough to drink; very sharp Maker's comments:
Lone Tree
Maker: John Zoerb -- 37 points 3rd Place Judge's comments: Great, simple composition; nice diagonal line above the tree leads in; there is just a hint of detail in the foreground, but might wish to see it a little lighter; could also try a B&W Maker's comments:
Winona Arches #3
Maker: John Zoerb -- 36 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Nice composition and leading line; good tonal quality and color; pleasing photo; might need a center of interest seen through the arches; nicely matted Maker's comments:
Uplifting Beauty
Maker: Kristi Olson -- 35 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Color pops; very sharp; centered placement works well; bottom leaf has a bright spot potentially distracting Maker's comments:
Grand Teton Reflections
Maker: Austin Miller -- 34 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Nice composition; lovely reflection; clouds are great; could lighten the shadows in the pines just a little bit Maker's comments:
Portal to the Rainforest
Maker: Austin Miller -- 34 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: Great colors; beautiful shades of green; very sharp throughout with a 3D effect; like the left and right edges as presented Maker's comments:
Bean Harvest
Maker: Cyndy Thorn -- 34 points Hon. Mention Judge's comments: The sky has a lovely, hazy effect, especially on the sun; highlights and shadows are managed well; good stop action; horizon well-placed Maker's comments:
Alexander
Maker: Brian Narveson -- 33 points Judge's comments: Nice, diagonal tilt; pleasant expression; good skin tones; hair and green shirt go well together; would nudge the crop up a bit giving more head room Maker's comments: This image was shot in my home studio using two Canon 430 EX II flashes with umbrellas. The key light was on camera right (48") set at twice the power of light on camera left (48"). Camera was mounted on a tripod 6' from subject. Subject was 5' in front of a unlighted white background. Lens was a Canon 18-135mm set to 59mm, Exposure mode was Manual. Settings were f/8, 1/160th sec., ISO 800. Subject was lifted from the background using Topaz AI mask. Background was inserted in Photoshop CC.
Grand Mesa Serenity
Maker: Brian Narveson -- 33 points Judge's comments: Pretty reflection; cabin is a good center of interest; very nice sky; suggest lightening the shadows Maker's comments: This image was shot on the Grand Mesa in Colorado. It is a 5 shot HDR image shot Av mode at f/4.5, ISO 800 which resulted in a shutter speed of 1/5000 sec. The high shutter speed was necessary due to the wind. While the lake was calm the trees were moving quite a bit. I also used the large aperture to make sure the cabin was sharp with slight blurring around the image to make the cabin standout as center of interest. Shot was handheld. HDR shots were +/-f/1 and +/- f/2.
Pink Water Lily #2
Maker: Eileen Roesler -- 31 points Judge's comments: Nice color; the farther away yellow centers are not sharp; could use more depth of field; upper right corner keeps eye in the frame Maker's comments:
Man Fishing
Maker: Eileen Roesler -- 29 points Judge's comments: Good stop action of the fisherman's line; stream is a nice leading line; could crop a little from the top down to the weeds Maker's comments:
San Francisco Landmark
Maker: Brandon Wanke -- 28 points Judge's comments: Good colors and composition; complementary matting; sharpness falls off toward the bridge Maker's comments:
Little Red Barn
Maker: Brandon Wanke -- 28 points Judge's comments: Nice, simple composition; barn appears a little soft; nice V between the hills is pleasing; could maybe crop from the top a bit; could lighten the shadows just a little Maker's comments:
Atlantic Ocean Sunrise
Maker: Sonja Haske -- 27 points Judge's comments: Very pleasing colors; good action in the water; moving toward the pier would have kept the sun more in the frame and used pier as leading line; might crop from the top and bottom Maker's comments:
I forgot the name
Maker: John Schilling -- 26 points Judge's comments: Very interesting image and subject matter; there is separation in the blacks; lacked impact; matting was crooked Maker's comments:
Unique Clouds
Maker: Phyllis Feiock -- 26 points Judge's comments: Beautiful sky in terms of both color and texture; nice silhouette effect that provides a base to the photo; sky alone could be an abstract print Maker's comments: