Judge: Sue Henley APSNZ
CAUTION for this topic:
You can generally use song or book titles in your own work without needing permission from the copyright holder because titles themselves are not copyrightable
Also the finished image MUST be incorporate all of your own images. NO STOCK IMAGES.
Use your imaganation using creative tools to directly interpret or evoke an emotion directly related to the song/book title
- Composition layering with multiple images
- Double exposure
https://www.digitalphotomentor.com/photography-challenge-image-represent-song/
Members suggestions: Movie/book titles, Song title [been done before I think, but still a goodie]
Open
Set Subject
Song and Book Titles
Thank you for the privilege of judging and critiquing your Song and Book titles images for the Marlborough Camera Club.
This has been a huge learning opportunity for me, which I very much appreciate and have really enjoyed. I have been particularly impressed with the high standard and the creativity of your C and B graders. While I did recognise some of these images, please accept that this had no bearing on the grades given.
Thank you
Sue Henley APSNZ
Prints
C Grade Open
The Hunter
What an absolute thrill to have this Swamp harrier flying towards you! I can see some nice detail in the wings and I love its beady eye! There is a small amount of haloing around the bird, watch out for this when creating your masks during editing. Great work capturing this bird in flight, they have a tendency to be very shy and wary most of the time which makes them very difficult subjects!
Merit
B Grade Open
Kingfisher in flight
What a wonderful capture of this Kingfisher in flight! I can see all the feather detail and the nice catch light in his crafty little eye! There is excellent sharpness and depth of field throughout the subject with a nice creamy bokeh in the background. It seems to me that your choice of iso, aperture and shutter speed worked very well for this shot. Nice work!
Honours
Digital
C Grade Set
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
I am really impressed with the amount of thought and creativity that has gone into this piece of work, my eyes go directly to the people then up to the stars and around the image and I love that you have included the number 42 , the answer to the question of life, the universe and everything! There is a little bit of haloing around your human figures, something to watch out for while editing. A very nice piece of work that fits the set subject perfectly.
Honours
Jonathon Livingston Seagull
A good capture of this seagull in flight, the bird is well exposed and sharp throughout, I can also see some nice detail in the feathers, eye and beak. I would like to have seen something else to add interest to the image, perhaps you might have captured him having a wee dispute with his mates or stealing a potato chip! I do think your choice of aperture and shutter speed have worked very well here.
Merit
Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler
Again I am totally in impressed with the amount of work and creativity that has gone into this image, the composition is uncluttered and very well set out with three very strong elements that tell a good story, I also like the dark background which really makes the subjects pop. An excellent choice for the set subject. Well done.
Honours
B Grade Set
A Spoonful of Sugar - Mary Poppins
Another very clever and well thought out image, everything is sharp and with good depth of field, I love the story in this, its simple and effective and I like how some sugar has also been spilt on the table! I wonder if you might try increasing the exposure just a wee fraction to really lift the image further. An excellent piece of work that fits the set subject perfectly
Honours
Back in Black . AC DC .
A very artistic and thoughtful piece of work , I really like the subject you haven chosen, he certainly appears to have character! If you look at the histogram for this image you will see the darks are clipped resulting in loss of detail particularly in the right hand side of the image and I wonder if its possible to pull out the shadows in that area so we can see a little more there. i do like your creativity here and I feel this image would definitely be worth re-editing.
Merit
Sight for sore eyes, Aerosmith .
I love the look of disgust on this shags face, he obviously saw you and was unimpressed, there is nice detail in the eyes and lovely textures in the feathers. I feel as though the subject has been slightly over processed and a little over sharpened so perhaps try easing that back a little. A good capture and I like the dreamy background.
Merit
Splish Splash I Was Taking A Bath
What a great capture of this little South Island Robin having a bath, he looks like he is really enjoying himself with water flying everywhere! I wonder if you might try a slightly tighter crop to eliminate some of the bright highlights in the background, bottom left, top left and far right. A good choice of shutter speed that has frozen the water droplets and a nice image that fits the set subject well.
Merit
The Windmills of Your Mind
What a wonderfully creative and thoughtful image, my eyes are first drawn to the prominent eye on the left then to the figure on the right and I also love that you have included the windmills as is in the song title. I feel the very centre of the image is quite bright and I wonder if you might try masking this area and reducing the highlights to bring out all the wonderful details there. A lovely image which suits the set subject perfectly, I do hope you will consider entering this in some external competitions.
Honours
B Grade Open
Sunrise on Wairau Lagoon
This looks like a beautiful still morning and there are some gorgeous tones and light that you have captured here. I wonder if you might try a try cropping in from the right so that tree is sitting nicely on the right third and the burnt out highlights from the sun are then eliminated, the other option if you really do want the sun included in the shot would be to do a double exposure and then combine the two shots in post processing. I like how you have caught the reflection of the tree in the still water.
Accepted
Taking flight
Well done for capturing this Canada goose in flight, a challenging subject! The bird is a little under exposed resulting in a loss of detail in the eye area and also under his wings, the sky on the other hand is over exposed with some burnt out highlights there, I wonder if you might like try early morning or late afternoon/evening with the light either to the side or behind you, I do like how you have caught the droplets from his feet as if he has just left the water.
Accepted
Windswept Maria Island, Tasmania
I really do like this very bent over windswept and knarly tree, well spotted! I wonder if you might like to try cropping in about a 1/4 from the bottom and then also some from the far right side to bring the tree in and make it more of a feature ,you may also like to try using generative fill in Photoshop to give the tree some more space on the far left. There is good depth of field here and the image is well exposed.
Accepted
A Grade Set
A Field Guide to New Zealand Fungi
What lovely specimens to grace the front cover of a book, these vibrant, wet and shiny fungi are well exposed with good depth of field and nice sharpness throughout. A very nice capture of a subject that can be very difficult to find amongst the ferns and foliage of our forests.
Honours
Cross Stitch
Another very creative and well thought out piece of work, I really like how you have included the book as part of the image and the plain dark background really helps the image stand out. I wonder if you might try increasing the exposure just a fraction to really lift the image further, a very nice composition with good depth of field and sharpness throughout.
Honours
Flying - The Beatles
What a very misty and moody image and I really admire your dedication to shooting this in the rain! I do also like how you have used a slower shutter speed to give those props the blur, for me this has added some more interest to the image.
Merit
Fungi of Aotearoa
I really like the composition in this shot, the three main subjects are well positioned and they stand out nicely against the lovely soft bokeh background. There is a smudge on the far right hand edge perhaps left over from editing. The exposure, depth and sharpness have all been very well handled in this image.
Accepted
Hey, Hey, We're the Monkees
What an endearing family portrait of these monkey’s! I wonder what they are looking at? I feel as though the crop on the left side is a little to tight, I would have liked it if the that cute little munchkin had some more room to look into, I do like how you have managed to capture all three faces and their eyes in focus.
Merit
If a church pew could talk. Author Cindy Carraway Williams.
What beautiful stained glass windows, they are really enhanced by the light shining through them. I wonder if you could try cropping in from the right side just outside the beam and also very slightly down from the top which would really strengthen the composition in my opinion, I think you have handled the exposure well, I also feel this image has potential and is a good choice for the set subject.
Merit
It's Not Easy Being Green
How very special to see one of these and what a beautiful and vibrant green. I love his wee toes! I wonder if you might like to try a tighter crop to make the frog a little more prominent in the frame. Well done on photographing this beautiful specimen, he really suits the song title!
Merit
Jonathan Livingstone Seagull (Richard Bach)
I really like how you have captured this seagull having a wee stretch. The light seems to be quite contrasted, and I feel as though the image is a little over exposed in some areas with some detail lost in the white feathers, you might like to try photographing these birds when the sun is much lower in the sky, either early morning or late afternoon. There is some nice detail in the feathers, and I like the different angle with which you have captured him.
Accepted
Song Sung Blue
Gosh I love how you have captured this thrush in full song by the look of things! For me the blue is a little too strong, that is just my opinion though because the image does suit the title as he appears to be singing his wee heart out! I also like that you have placed the bird slightly more to the left of the image.
Merit
Surfer Girl - The Beach Boys
This surfer really looks like she is enjoying herself and I really like how you have captured the action, the subject is well exposed and I can see really nice sharp detail in the whites of the surfer and in the waves. I wonder if you might like to try using the linear gradient to lift the exposure on the left just slightly. Surfing is often difficult to photograph as the light can often be challenging, so well done.
Merit
Telephone Line – ELO
I really like this high key image you have created, it is nicely exposed, the whole composition works well and there is nice detail in the whites. I like that you have included the three power poles, they really add interest for me and give it nice balance. I also like those rugged looking rocks on the right with their shapes and texture.
Honours
Tennessee Mountain Home (Dolly Parton)
I think this image suits black and white, the bare tree also helps to add some interest and mood. I wonder if you might like to try opening out the shadows which will help bring out the little cabin on the left then also pulling the highlights slider right back which will help to reveal more detail in the clouds, I like how you have placed the bare tree and the little cabin nicely on the left third.
Accepted
These Boots Are Made For Walking
I really like the story that this image tells, those boots really do look like they’ve done some hard mileage! I wonder if you might like to try opening up the shadows to reveal more detail there, then also pull back the highlights slider to balance the exposure. I really like this image though, it has been well seen and it fits the subject.
Honours
Those magnificent men in their flying machines
I love the detail in this image, I can clearly see the pilots face, goggles and scarf. I can also see all those wires and rivets and things! I love the blur of the props you have captured. I wonder if you might try pulling back the highlights in the sky to enhance the image even further. Really nice work , it also fits the set subject.
Honours
Who are you? - The Who
I like that you have captured something different here. The sky and some of the background is very over exposed and as result much of the detail has been lost, there is also some chromatic aberration around the ponies mane which would be easy to remove in post processing. I love the reaction on the young ladies face.
Accepted
You're so Vein!
A very clever and creative image, I do like the black ground and there is a nice simplicity to this image. I’m not sure it totally fits the set subject as vein and vain have two different meanings, however I really do love your creativity and I hope you keep it going!
Merit
A Grade Open
Between Shifts
I really like the editing, and the tones and textures in this image, the monochromatic effect suits it very well I feel. The young man is obviously concentrating on his phone though and I would have liked to have seen some engagement with the subject and some emotion. A well exposed image with good depth of field and the portrait crop works well I think.
Merit
Kiokio (Parablechnum novae-zelandiae)
A beautiful and vibrant image, I love how that fern frond really pops out from the surrounding vegetation, the main subject has good depth of field, is well exposed and is showing lots of texture and detail throughout. I wonder if you might like to experiment with turning the fern on more of a diagonal and then cropping a little tighter for even more impact. I really do like this image and I enjoy the perspective you have used for the shot.
Honours
Leopard Plant Flower
A beautiful and vibrant subject, the flower really pops and really is the star of the show here. I feel as though the petals in the top left of the image do drag my eye a little and I wonder if you might have considered cloning those out, I feel the flower has been photographed well with good exposure and nice depth of field.
Merit
Life in the Sounds
What a pretty little bay this is and you have managed to capture it when the Pohutukawa flowers are in bloom. For me the image is quite flat, and I get the impression the light wasn’t in your favour, I wonder if you might try a panoramic crop, say for example 16 x 7 and removing at least half of the water along with some of the hillside behind to then really make a feature of the wharf, the batches, and the Pohutukawa in bloom. Gosh I really like that little red phone box sitting on the wharf.
Accepted
Shot of the Month
The Windmills of Your Mind
By James King-Turner
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