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| A
splash of spring colour |
| Jess Says: I have to admit that I am not a lover of the colour on B & W. images. Putting that aside this is a very nice composition and the detail is excellent. I would have just preferred it as a B & W image without the colour. |
| Mark Says: This is quiet a nice idea, and goes some way to working – but does quite pull it off for me. The colour looks false, though it may not be, and there is too much green left in around the edges. The composition is good, with the eye going around the picture to the house and the bush to the left. |
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| another
rainy day |
| Jess Says: Good image, reflection in water well taken. Cropping the large dark area at the bottom would have improved the overall composition. Well seen and taken. |
| Mark Says: An interesting idea too. As the title suggest rain, I would like to see a little more grass at the top and less black at the bottom. This may then give a better idea of a puddle as at the moment it’s a reflection in water. |
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| East
Riding Sunset |
| Jess Says: This image has great potential, excellent exposure and colour. If the photographer had just moved the camera a little so the tree was not slap bang in the middle of the image. Moving ones feet to the right or left and the camera slightly up or down would have resulted in a terrific photo. |
| Mark Says: A nice sunset that, in my view correctly breaks the rule of thirds and puts the tree in the centre of shot. I would have cropped a little more off the bottom and just give a hint of hedge. The sunset itself is well captured with a good balance between the foreground and background. |
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| Pip |
| Jess Says: Very nice action shot. It is difficult to get action photos from head on. This works very well, just a little more speed would have given more sharpness to the front feet. Well done. |
| Mark Says: Good capture of the dog. Nice depth of field and bokeh. Focus on the face is spot on – very impressed as the animal was moving quite a bit. Exposure is good too. This will appeal to quite a few on here! |
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| The
Soloist - WINNER |
| Jess Says: Excellent portrait, good exposure for the face and hand. Skin tone is good and the hair is well exposed and detailed. My only problem is with the black background that leaves the dark jacket without definition. Very well done. |
| Mark Says: Very nice portrait. Exposure, focus excellent. There is just enough difference between the blacks of the background and the jacket. The eyes have nice catchlights too. I wonder if it would have been just that bit better if the sitter had looked at the camera – but then it might have lost something else. This has to be up with the winners. |
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| Power
|
| Jess Says: Good crop on this, a little more contrast would have really popped the details. Well done. |
Mark Says: |
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| Swan
|
| Jess Says: Lovely portrait of a graceful bird. Good detail and very nice composition. The water drop from the beak is a plus. Would have been nice if the eye were more visible. Good image |
| Mark Says: Good capture of this elegant bird. I think its slightly underexposed, with the birds head looking a little grey – the back is just about right. The dripping water off the beak is a good touch. I would have liked to see a bit more of the eye. |
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| Posing
for a photo |
| Jess Says: Nice clear image with good eye focus, a little blown out on the breast and the tip of the beak is not quite in focus. Maybe just a little more DOF. Good shot. |
| Mark Says: Definitely a posing bird! There are a couple of burnt out areas on the chest and head, which is a shame as the rest of the exposure is good. The pose is good too with a crisp eye. |
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| A country postbox |
| Jess Says: Great composition on this. The letter box is nicely framed and the detail is very good, colour could be a bit more saturated but altogether a good image. |
| Mark Says: For me this is an ok shot. The box is well positioned in the frame, but lacks a bit of punch. Perhaps it just needs to be framed somehow. The burnt out collection times label is distracting and I wish I could read it! |
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| Red
Rose - THIRD (joint) |
| Jess Says: This mine so no comment |
| Mark Says: A super shot of the rose, the creamy bokeh is just fabulous. I might have moved the bud behind the flower. Exposure on the flower is about spot on with lots of detail in the petals. |
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| Dragon
Fly - SECOND |
| Jess Says: This mine so no comment |
| Mark Says: This has to be my favourite so far. Stunning shot of the insect. Diagonal composition, exposure, lighting is just perfect. Again the creamy bokeh is beautiful. Excellent Picture that would look great on the wall. |
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| Night
Colour |
| Jess Says: Some glorious colour in this, well defined photo but I think that cropping some of the dark area at the top would make it work better as ones eye is drawn away from the colour to the dark area at the top of the image. Nicely exposed, well done. |
| Mark Says: I would have cropped the top of the shot tighter and cloned out the window to remove the distractions. Apart from that, easily correctable point, the colours falling onto the windows are great and is well exposed. |
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| Maltese
Sunset |
| Jess Says: Very nice sunset well exposed and excellent colour, I would have liked just a bit more of the building with the flag to give it a bit more balance |
| Mark Says: I like this shot a lot. The black building at the bottom is perfect as is the flag which has kept its colours. The sun pocking through the clouds is very good. But for me the best bit is the flare running up behind the clouds to the corners of the frame. Very good effort. |
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| Am
I photogenic? |
| Jess Says: This image has given me a bit of trouble. The dragonfly is beautifully sharp and well defined but overall the image is a bit unbalanced. The heavy texture of the railing overpowers the delicate structure of the dragonfly so ones eye is drawn away from the dragonfly to the railing. Very sharp with good colour. |
| Mark Says: Another good effort. I think I would have cropped it at the vertical post on the left, but that is a minor quibble. I’m guessing the photog was a close as the lens would allow, which doesn’t necessarily cause a problem as such. It’s a shame the yellow highlight is behind the tail. |
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| Canal
Bridge |
| Jess Says: Good sky and some lovely textures in the brickwork, lots of interest with the barge through the bridge. A better crop with the top of the bridge arch complete and a little less foreground would have made this a better composition. |
| Mark Says: The detail under the bridge has been well retained in potentially difficult lighting. There is something about the sky that doesn’t look quite right to me, but it could just be one of those things. My eye is drawn all around the picture by the boat in the centre and the diagonal canel. Well done. |
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| The
Butterfly |
| Jess Says: Lovely butterfly on flower, good colour and quite sharp, the background is a bit distracting; perhaps a different DOF would have solved this. Nicely seen and taken. |
| Mark Says: Well exposed and taken shot. Nothing distracting behind the butterfly. Nicely positioned in the frame. Eyes of the insect are interesting too! |
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| Llandudno
|
| Jess Says: A simple but interesting composition, a little more contrast would bring out the texture in the distant rocks. Sky would be better with a few clouds to make interest and it is a shame the boat is leaving the photo instead of coming into it. Still a good clean image. |
| Mark Says: Is this Black Rock Sands? We used to go there a lot as kids! Anyway I digress! Nicely horizontal sea- none leaking out of the edges. I would have preferred to see the boat a little higher up the frame, and possibly further back to give it room to sail somewhere. |
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| White
Butterfly |
| Jess Says: Really good butterfly close-up, clean and sharp. I might have tried cloning out the twig to the lower left as it is a bit distracting. Well taken image. |
| Mark Says: My first. |
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| Cassie
|
| Jess Says: Great portrait of a lovely little girl, the eyes are just perfect, crisp and sharp. The only minus is the blue item behind her head which I find distracting. Excellent exposure. |
| Mark Says: My second. |
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| They're
watching you |
| Jess Says: This image has a lot of potential if only it was in focus. The pole in the foreground completely distracts from the line of gulls. Just moving to the right to eliminate this would have made this a much better image. |
| Mark Says: I like this one. Strong diagonal allows the eye to travel up and down. Shame the out of focus metal bit is there – it might have cropped out to make the shot even stronger. Good effort though. |
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| It's
hard work being a tiger |
| Jess Says: Who can resist these great beautiful animals, good DOF pushing the background out of focus and a nice composition. The image is a bit over exposed which washes out a lot of the striking markings and detail. |
| Mark Says: A bit too over exposed for me. Too much of the fur is burnt out. Nicely cropped though and both sitting on the vertical thirds. |
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| Zebra
|
| Jess Says: Nice sharp portrait of a interesting animal, good detail in the head but the washed out sky detracts from the overall impact of the image. |
| Mark Says: Again, slightly over exposed, which has washed out the sky a bit. The Zebra could have been made much more punchy to emphasise the stripes. |
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| Who
you lookin' at? - THIRD (joint) |
| Jess Says: Great chipmunk image, the detail in the fur is just amazing. A catch-light in the eye would have been a plus but overall a excellent photo |
| Mark Says: Another good shot, exposed well, eyes nicely focused. The pose is good, with a good diagonal line through his body. |
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| Reflections
|
| Jess Says: Lovely landscape, good composition and detail. The mountains and sky are well exposed as is the hotel across the lake. The tips of the trees in the foreground give it depth. Well seen and taken. |
| Mark Says: I’m pretty sure the building is vertical, but I can’t help thinking the water line is slopping down to the right. Exposure is spot on, the mountains and sky looks fabulous. The building and its reflection is very good. |