Following on from the success of last years inaugural presentation, a second transcontinental photographic competition between Victoria Camera Club, Canada and Eastwood Photographic Society, Scotland was held in January 2008.
20 Images were presented by each club and were judged by Canadian and Scottish judges. The sum of the accumulated scores decided the overall winner. In addition, each judge was asked to provide comments on the images.
The comments can be viewed along with a thumnail of the image below or by looking at the archive.
photographs are copyrighted. They may not be copied or used for any purpose without the permission of the photographer.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Victoria vs Eastwood 2008
A Note from Victoria
This years competition was as hectic as ever, trying to get images, organising judges at both sides of the Atlantic and preparing the results.
After a slow start the images from Victoria came flooding in. Such was the quality of some of the work, we spent a few long hours and several cups of coffee (with cinnamon buns) in front of the computer selecting the official entries.
My thanks go to our judges, Gregg Eligh (Canada) and Libby Smith (Scotland) for taking the time to view, judge and provide such positive feedback. It was interesting to see comparisons in the comments with a few individual variations.
So, enjoy the website and hopefully it will give you inspiration to get out and get shooting.
Douglas Bain
The Results
Canadian Judging:
1st Place: Misty Bridge by Chris Jack Chalmers (Eastwood Photographic Society)
2nd Place: Saskatchewan Combine by Gary Ford (Victoria Camera Club)
3rd Place: Blowing In The Breeze by Chisholm MacRae ( Eastwood Photographic Society)
Joint 3rd Place: Harris Hawk by Peter De Marco (Eastwood Photographic Society)
Total scores:
Eastwood 298
Victoria 306
Scottish Judging:
1st Place: Harris Hawk by Peter De Marco (Eastwood Photographic Society)
2nd Place: Enjoying the Morning Sun by Alex Dorrens (Eastwood)
At Butterfly Gardens on Green by Gary Schaefer (Victoria)
3rd Place: Scrapyard Art by Murray Gough (Victoria)
Race in the Rain by Douglas Bain (Victoria)
Total Scores:
Eastwood 303
Victoria 307
Overall Placings: (based on points)
1st Place: Harris Hawk by Peter De Marco (from Eastwood)
2nd Place: Misty Bridge by Jack Chalmers (from Eastwood)
3rd Place: There were 4 tied for third place
Scrapyard Art by Murray Gough (Victoria)
Saskatchewan Combine by Gary Ford (Victoria)
Enjoying the Morning Sun by Alex Dorrens (Eastwood)
At Butterfly Gardens on Green by Gary Schaefer (Victoria)
Total Scores Overall:
Eastwood Photographic Society 601
Victoria Camera Club 613
Congratulations to Victoria
A Wire Knot
Photographer: Gary Ford
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 13
Scottish Points: 12
Canadian Comments:
Good creative eye. Simple & graphic. Nice selective focus. Background works very
well. No conflict or distraction.
Scottish Comments:
Good use of differential focus to create an image out of an everyday subject, perhaps more dramatic lighting, or changing the viewpoint would give a stronger image.
Lone Cyclist
Photographer: David Hendry
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 14
Canadian Comments:
Very nice composition & design. Red jersey is eye-catching with overall brick pattern.
Nice use of asymmetry. Optical illusion with depth & line. I do find the manhole
cover to be an intrusion in the overall design.
Scottish Comments:
Good use of the high viewpoint, I would perhaps crop out some of the paving, for me just a little much. More side lighting would have strengthened the shadow part of the image.
Flower Fantasy
Photographer: Dennis Pogson
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 12
Scottish Points: 12
Canadian Comments:
A bit too busy for me. Needs more of a design or centre of focus.
Scottish Comments:
I liked the feel and effect of the soft colours in the lower middle of this image, compositionally I found it a little confusing with not one main point of focus, the white areas top right I found very distracting.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
At Butterfly Gardens on Green
Photographer: Gary Schaefer
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 19
Canadian Comments:
Beautifully composed and shot. Strong diagonal line for composition.
Scottish Comments:
Excellent use of the stems on the diagonal and the butterfly within the frame, nothing distracting in the background, good depth of field use, a superb image
Black Bear
Photographer: Richard James
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 12
Scottish Points: 16
Canadian Comments:
This doesn't jump out at me. It's a very good representation of the animal - well exposed and shot, but it's more of a record than an example of the photographer's creative input.
Scottish Comments:
Again a good composition, clever use of the different bands of colour,
good positioning again of the bear within the frame. The autumn colour is really what strengthens the shot. The light coloured log in the foreground catches your eye, darkening it down would, I feel, strengthen the shot
Getting Away
Photographer: Douglas Park
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 12
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
This is more of a journalistic record shot to me. The 3rd boy, upper right, is cropped off & the crowd on the sidelines are neither in the frame, nor out. The action of the two main boys is very good and the photographer has worked to enhance our centre of attention, but increased selective focus could have worked a bit better, I feel, to do this and tidy up the other details.
Nice "try".
Scottish Comments:
Good timing and positioning of the boy in maroon, tight composition between the two I think works well. The author has taken the strength out of the background, taking away possible distractions, putting more emphasis on the boy, for me though it has been done a little too much — it all appears very flat, particularly the other boy.
Clyde Arc
Photographer: Eddie McMurdo
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 13
Scottish Points: 14
Canadian Comments:
Perfect time of day/evening for a shot like this & it's well done. The buildings, sky & arc are real highlights, but I find the bottom 30% of the frame heavy & lacking.
Perhaps wait for more people walking, or bikes in the bike lane?
Scottish Comments:
Nicely exposed image, on the buildings and the bridge. Compositionally I didn't feel it was quite as strong as some of the others, there is a lot of dark area in the bottom 3rd of the frame, and I would have liked to see the top left corner of the main building through the arch of the bridge. Ideally photographing the person slightly earlier would have put him in a stronger position
Car Curves
Photographer: Steve Barber
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 13
Scottish Points: 13
Canadian Comments:
Beautiful abstract - shows a good creative 'eye' and while I don't care that I can't tell what it is, that does become difficult to tell how well you've shot it. I think a clean bold line of some reflector could add some depth & shape. I do like it.
Scottish Comments:
Lovely colour in this image, you get the feel of the paintwork too, for me no strong point of interest — your eye tends to go to the highlights, and perhaps a more dramatic angle on the curves may have created more depth to the image
Brake the Deuce
Photographer: Gary Schaefer
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 13
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
Bold, graphic composition - I like that it's a colour study in B & W. It's on a shot like this that I like to see the shooter impose a bit more creative input. Example: wet the tire or use a white reflector to brighten up the lower right metal surfaces.
Scottish Comments:
Good use of the diagonals in this pattern and texture picture, good depth of field — this picture is more 3 D the further away you are from the screen. To strengthen the point of interest, I would perhaps crop a little off the RHS.
Night Riders
Photographer: Hazel Gordon
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 12
Scottish Points: 17
Canadian Comments:
What's interesting? The event? or the photograph? Would this subject hold up as well in B & W? Good use of crop to fit the subject.
Scottish Comments:
Great atmosphere in this image, good use of the letterbox format and good positioning of the guy in red top right who is very important. This image is a little gritty, and doesn't come across quite as sharp as it should, had it not been for this it would have been higher placed.
Dunnet Head
Photographer: Douglas Bain
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 17
Scottish Points: 16
Canadian Comments:
Beautiful image.
Good use of depth & light, & the graduated filter (I assume) for the sky is done well. I think the foreground could have had more interest and given even more depth if the photographer had stepped forward and used the bit of fence to frame the bottom of the image.
Scottish Comments:
Lovely colours in this image, the contrasts between the sky, sea and land work well. Although there are lovely tones and detail in the land in the foreground, I feel that the image would have been stronger if the shot could have been taken slightly further forward
Misty Bridge
Photographer: Jack Chalmers
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 20 (First Place)
Scottish Points: 17
Canadian Comments:
This is as beautiful an image as I've seen!!!!! The one small element of humanity really makes he image. Perfect crop and composition. Great exposure. There are only about 3 images I've ever seen that I wish I'd taken and this is one of them.
Scottish Comments:
Great atmosphere in this image, good use of black & white. The tonal range I feel is also right for the feel of this image. Compositionally it is a little busy on the left hand side so the man doesn't stand out as well as he might.
Taking it with only one of the lampposts on the left and waiting for the man to walk past it into the shot would perhaps have been stronger
Enthusiasts
Photographer: John Lockyer
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 14
Canadian Comments:
This is a bold, graphic image. Very nicely done. For me, it would have jumped much more if I'd been able to see a hint of detail in all that black silhouette. Well done.
Scottish Comments:
Bags of impact in this shot, very strong silhouette, the whole image feels a little heavy for me and it's getting a bit gritty in places, and there's a little too much of large area of total black
Late Evening Anchorage
Photographer: Jim McCreery
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 17
Scottish Points: 16
Canadian Comments:
I'm not a fan of sunsets, but this is more than that. Nicely shot & perfectly exposed.
Scottish Comments:
Good use of a low horizon to put emphasis on this very interesting sky, great textures and colours, and good positioning of the boat. If it had been possible to move to the left a bit, it would have allowed the author to reduce the amount of black trees on the right hand side, and helped put a little bit more prominence to the boat
Gooseneck Barnacles
Photographer: Carole Valkeneir
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 16
Canadian Comments:
Difficult subject, well shot. Good use of flash. Nice sense of depth.
Scottish Comments:
Great colours in this image, good composition to give us the barnacles and the background, which I think is very important in this type of shot. The depth of field is sufficient, but slightly more would strengthen the image. I would like to have seen the author going in just a little closer with their wide-angle lens to miss out the dark area at the bottom of the frame. As it stands I would crop the slightly distracting light object bottom right
Moonlighting
Photographer: Mel Leiper
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 14
Canadian Comments:
Beautifully framed & composed & good use of crop. Works so well with only a minor use of colour. Well done.
Scottish Comments:
Good use of the letterbox format, nice atmosphere to in this image.
Exposure wise it's been well handled. I didn't find the main subject in this image strong enough to hold my attention in this level of competition
Shalimar
Photographer: Sheena Rainey
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 14
Scottish Points: 13
Canadian Comments:
Bold & graphic. Good selective crop. Flat light makes your colours 'pop'. Good use of diagonals.
Scottish Comments:
Bags of impact with this shot, in some ways too much for me. The red I feel is a little dominant. The other elements in the shot have all subtle tones. Perhaps an angle of light to give more texture and shadows to the red would help. Something appears to have moved when the edge effect's been added, at the top. For me the edge effect isn't needed
Enjoying The Morning Sun
Photographer: Alex Dorrens
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 19
Canadian Comments:
Who shot this? Walt Disney? (That's meant as a compliment) You've got some major connections to get lighting like that done for you!!! Beautifully composed & exposed.
Scottish Comments:
This shot shows exactly the impact good lighting can have. The lighting is in exactly the right place. The autumn colours had enormously to this shot. I like the inclusion of a fair bit of the background to help emphasise this fox, 'in the spotlight', in effect — I would perhaps crop just a little off the LHS
Gr Grey Owl
Photographer: Richard James
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 17
Canadian Comments:
Very nicely composed with excellent use of selective focus. Background tells us 'where we are' and doesn't compete or distract.
Scottish Comments:
Good composition, pin sharp, this shot shows well the camouflage of the owl on the stump. I liked the displaced feathers. Ideally I would have liked to see the head turned slightly further towards the photographer. I would lighten the dark area in the background slightly, as it tends to catch your eye
Flowers In Evening Light
Photographer: Andrew Shearer
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 14
Scottish Points: 16
Canadian Comments:
Nice light & focus. The composition works with a little hint of a diagonal in the angle of the stem. A bit more of an angle might enhance that.
Scottish Comments:
Nice quality of lighting in this shot too, not too strong that we still retain all the lovely colours, nice and sharp and nothing distracting in the background. For me it would have been stronger if the light had been more on the flowers grouped at the top of the image
Jasper National Park Mountains and Fireweed
Photographer: Carole Valkeneir
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 17
Scottish Points: 12
Canadian Comments:
Nicely done - good colour & use of focus. I like the 'layers' & depth in this shot.
Scottish Comments:
Again bags of impact with the colour of the fireweed as the foreground interest in this shot. Difficult shot get the exposure right all the way through; we are losing a little detail in the clouds. I feel this shot is just a little busy compositionally and a change of viewpoint to use the fire weed in the foreground without the two conifer trees would have given us a clearer view to the mountains beyond — as it is they are acting as a barrier
Blowing In The Breeze
Photographer: Chisholm MacRae
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 18
Scottish Points: 13
Canadian Comments:
This is such a beautiful shot - I can feel the wind & energy. So nice to find interest in an everyday subject. I envision that if you'd bent down a bit you might have 'contained' all the action in the white sky and not had the intrusion of the horizon line. I know, it's only a little bit. I love this!
Scottish Comments:I like the idea of this shot; the shutter speed chosen has rendered the washing pin sharp, good exposure too. Although the conditions have been excellent to give the feeling of the wind blowing through the washing, as the image has been composed, the fairly bland sky to dark water is making a very dominant horizon which is detracting from the washing, and the lighting is a little flat
Mule Deer
Photographer: Gordon Griffith
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 15
Scottish Points: 17
Canadian Comments:
Well shot - the tones and little bit of colour in the background work well. A bit too centered for my liking. Lessen the brighter space on the right by cropping some of that off. Asymmetry will enhance, I believe.
Scottish Comments:
Another lovely image added to by with the autumn colours. Pin sharp on
the deer and again well exposed. I would be tempted to crop just a little off the Right hand side as the deer's head is a little central as this area is very light. Also darkening down slightly the light area to the left of it's head would increase the strength of the deer
Highlander
Photographer: Douglas Park
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 12
Scottish Points: 14
Canadian Comments:
You're in close for drama & character. Good! But something else is needed. I'm missing seeing his eyes. Or what it is his eyes are seeing. When you're in this tight, details count a great deal.
Scottish Comments:
Great character here, I like the angle of the head. The yellow on the left is a little distracting; ideally moving round to avoid this would strengthen the shot. For me, for this type of shot, I would like to have seen it sharper t really bring out all the textures in the beard, moustache & hair.
Old Caboose
Photographer: Gordon Griffith
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 14
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
The colours are spectacular! I really feel that some selective cropping or a bit more design to the composition could enhance the image.
Scottish Comments:
Wow, colour wise this has bags of impact with the red, green and gold combination, and technically it's pin sharp and well exposed. After getting over the initial impact though I found myself looking for something else — the lighting's very flat, and there's not much depth to the image, perhaps a different lens and getting in closer — giving more detail, or further away giving it more of a setting
Painted Chrysanthemum
Photographer: Brigitte Hotzl
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 13
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
Bold, graphic and very painterly. Your Photoshop work gives me the impression that the technique has given this its impact rather than the basic shot underneath it all.
Scottish Comments:
Again loads of impact, the effect that has been added to this picture, I feel works because of the range of colours and tones it's brought out — it's not too heavy, and there are no large areas with nothing happening. The one thing that would have strengthened this image for me is a stronger placed point of interest — your eye goes to the yellows and the blue but none are dominant enough or in as strong enough position
Watercolour Iris
Photographer: Emilia Calder
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 12
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
Interesting abstraction. Colours & line have a strong impact. Probably more than the image on its own.
Scottish Comments:
The colour combination here works well with the purple and green. I like the feel created in the green background by the effect used. The iris itself for me is a little overwhelmed by the effect — we lose a bit of the 3D of the flower. Perhaps doing the effect on a layer and brushing back on a mask slightly the area of the flower to retain a little more of the original detail would have strengthened the image
Race in the Rain
Photographer: Douglas Bain
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 18
Canadian Comments:
Nice shot. Well designed and composed. Good depth & use of focus. curious 'grid', upper left, is a distraction from the action.
Scottish Comments:
I loved this sport shot, it's added to by the weather conditions, and having the leader in red! Good positioning of the leader in the frame with the chasing pack, although out of focus, very important. The shot could have been strengthened by darkening down slightly the top part of the image to keep you eye in — you could get away with cropping across the top slightly to remove the far right hot spot
Peekaboo
Photographer: William Rainey
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 17
Scottish Points: 17
Canadian Comments:
Nicely done! Good use of environment for framing. I would prefer to see your subject just a bit more off centre, or exactly, 'bang on' dead centre.
Scottish Comments:
The textures and shapes of the bark in this image are great — compositionally the shot is superb with the creature poking its head out, well-caught shot. This image would definitely finish a little higher if it were just a little sharper.
Saskatchewan Combine
Photographer: Gary Ford
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 19 (Second Place)
Scottish Points: 16
Canadian Comments:
This is such a beautiful image! Strong contender for 1 st. I don't know if you waited patiently, or reacted instantly, but you were rewarded with beautiful light.
I just feel that your subject is a tiny touch crowded. Jeez, it's out on the huge prairies. Give it a bit of room.
Scottish Comments:
Interesting subject matter, I definitely wouldn't have walked past this! — there are great colours in this image, particularly in the bottom half; I love the quality in this part of the picture. To me as it's presented that's where all your attention goes. Behind the 'cockshute part of the combine, the landscape and combine are very dull. This tends to split the sky from the foreground — adding a little contrast and light to this middle area of the image would I think strengthen the shot
Scrapyard Art #2
Photographer: Murray Gough
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 17
Scottish Points: 18
Canadian Comments:
Beautiful graphic study. This image looks like it's made of metal. Great tones and lines. I love it!
Scottish Comments:
Very graphic feel to this image. I love the effect that's been used, the contrast has been well handled, nice and sharp and textural feel. Very minor point on this image — the line of the door feels a little central — I would be tempted to crop off the RHS.
The Blue Staircase
Photographer: Hazel Gordon
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 15
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
This has strong design elements - diagonals, repeat lines, contrasting colours. But I feel I just need a wee bit more. Of the vase? the floor?...?
Scottish Comments:
Interesting shapes, textures and colours in this shot, nice and sharp all the way through — perhaps though just too many elements
Sixty Year Old Paddler
Photographer: Jim McCreery
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
Beautiful light & colour, perfect angle, nice composition. This just feels fun, interesting & exciting.
Scottish Comments:
Well executed shot of the Waverley, nicely exposed, interest in the sky.
Taking the shot from a slightly lower angle would have pushed the funnels up into the sky, and away from the line of the background hill
Seaweed
Photographer: Tim Almdal
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 15
Scottish Points: 14
Canadian Comments:
Interesting abstract. The brighter(white) water isn't overpowering. The texture is 'real'. The composition is very close, but I just feel our little green "hero" is not quite significant or defined enough.
Scottish Comments:
Lovely quality to this minimalist shot excellent exposure and crackingly sharp. For me, the two main elements are too far apart — there's too much of the sand
Barras
Photographer: Kevin Kelly
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 14
Scottish Points: 13
Canadian Comments:
There's a story being told here, and it peaks my curiosity. A keen eye caught this, but I feel there's either too much information here, or not enough.
Scottish Comments:
Someone trying something different - Interesting idea, and the subject in the mirror is great. For me in this instance it's not quite come off. With the elaborateness of the mirror and the bits and pieces around the mirror, your eye is drawn there. The image in the mirror is also quite busy, and also a little flat because of the lighting — concentrating on the scene only in the mirror in this instance may have been the stronger image
Sleeping Flamingo
Photographer: Brigitte Hotzl
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 17
Scottish Points: 15
Canadian Comments:
A beautiful, sculptural study in line, form & texture. I would have liked to see some detail in the background or deep shadow to add depth. good eye.
Scottish Comments:
I like the almost square format of this image, and fantastic colour too. It's a little contrast though; we are losing a little bit of the detail in the shadow areas of the bird, and losing just a little bit on the beak. The main thing that dropped it points wise was the lack of definition in the feathers, as it's slightly pixelated
Harris Hawk
Photographer: Peter De Marco
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 18
Scottish Points: 20 (1st Place)
Canadian Comments:
What a perfectly timed shot! Well composed and placed in the frame. Nice clean background - no distractions.
Scottish Comments:
Superb shot, well positioned in the frame, lovely angle of the bird and it's wings. Nice and sharp where it needs to be. The icing on the cake would have been the highlight detail on the tail.
Still Life #1
Photographer: Murray Gough
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 15
Scottish Points: 13
Canadian Comments:
Very painterly. Good effect & technique. Works with the subject. "Digital Van Gogh". The image is an overall study in texture, but I usually look for a centre of attention .... a point of focus.
Scottish Comments:
Another shot with loads of impact. The effect added to this image I feel didn't work as well as some of the earlier ones — I feel I is overpowering the flowers a little — the four flower heads are all fairly equal in strength too, so not one point of interest
Photographers Note: This image is a polaroid manipulated by hand in a traditional darkroom.
Tranquility
Photographer: Bob Hooper
Club: Victoria Camera Club
Canadian Points: 16
Scottish Points: 16
Canadian Comments:
Nice use of line and space. Well composed. Good design elements.
Scottish Comments:
Great use of the white fence to create a picture. The perspective and composition created by this one element and its shadow really make this picture, with the very important horse — ideally I would have seen the top rail slightly less contrasty. Cloning out the straggly grasses on the left hand side would also have put slightly more emphasis on the horse
Water Sculpture
Photographer: Alex Dorrens
Club: Eastwood Photographic Society
Canadian Points: 14
Scottish Points: 14
Canadian Comments:
I'm sorry, but I'm having a difficult time with this image. The shooter has worked to create a specific concept here & I feel the concept has more to it than just as a photograph.
Scottish Comments:
Again a totally different shot. I wasn't sure this one worked quite as well as some of the earlier ones. Good choice of shutter speed freezing the water droplets. Personally I would have liked to see more detail and tone in the face — as it is my eye goes to the area with the bulk of the water droplets, which looks a bit like hair, then to the face — more of the quality that is in the bottom right of the face would have pushed this image up position wise dramatically.
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