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Photo of the Month - October 2019

Here are the results for the club's Photo of the Month competition for October.

This month the entries were judged by Roy Frankland ARPS. His choices are below with comments below each image.


Roy started by saying....

" I’ve been taking photos seriously for more than 20 years and have an ARPS with the Royal Photographic Society. I’ve published one book, A different way of life, on street photography in Asia and had other images published in several other magazines and publications. I love black and white and had my own darkroom for many years. I was also a member of Washington camera club for a long time until I started working abroad."


1st Place - "Early Morning Arrival" by David Brennan

" The top 3 were difficult to separate and each has some very strong merits, but in the end, I’m going for this shot as my first placed image. Composition is strong, but it’s really all about the light. The lovely early morning glow is exposed perfectly, and I really love the golden highlights on the waves, the sunbeams coming through and highlighting the faint mist of early morning and even the birds in the sky. I would’ve probably cropped a little from the left-hand side as it’s a little dark, but overall, this for me is the winner "


2nd Place - "Olivia Joy" by Derek Rootham

" What an expression on this little girl’s face! This image is all about that expression and it came very close to getting first place, but I felt the background and depth of field just let it down slightly. The coffee mug, the coke bottle and the mobile phone, all are a bit distracting and pull my eyes from her face … I would’ve cropped closer in on the girl’s face to remove some of that or blurred the background through either depth of field control or digital means. That would have taken it to first place. However, that said, that expression is perfectly captured, focus on her eyes is excellent and this is just a lovely portrait captured in the moment. This is my second placed image."


3rd Place - "Tarn Crag Nose" by David Gardner

"Again, this came very close to being higher in my top 3. There is loads of lovely atmosphere from the mist and low clouds and nice lighting on the foreground. The location is fantastic, and I like the inclusion of the ferns in the foreground, but I personally would have cropped this square and removed some of the blackness at the bottom. I would also have boosted the contrast a little more to make it a bit more dramatic, although of course, this is subjective and personal choice. It’s a strong image, great location, lovely atmosphere, and I think, with a bit more processing it could be even better, however I still feel this is strong enough for my top 3 and I’ve given this third place."


Highly Commended (not in any order of preference.)


"Coniston Calmed" by Martin Humble

" This is a lovely simple shot with nice lighting and positioning of the boat is spot on with a lovely reflection. This was in and out of my top 3 and came really close to being in the top 3, but in the end, it just didn’t have quite the impact to take it into the top 3 positions, but still good enough to give this one a highly commended. Well done!"


"Stalking" by David Brennan

" Another strong image, that came close to top 3. I don’t do much wildlife photography myself, partly, as I know just how difficult it is to get right. This shot is very well done, great detail in the bird and a great reflection too. I found it a little flat and the lighting could have been better, but I also realise that you have to make the best of what you have. A strong image, but not quite up there with the top 3 on this occasion. Still very good though, and another highly commended. Well done!"


"An Old Classic" by David Brennan

"These old London busses are so photogenic and a perfect choice for some selective colouring against a black and white background. The selective colouring has been very well done in this shot, it’s a technique I use myself on occasions as it can create a lot of impact. I feel though in this case, I would’ve liked to have seen a bit more of the setting and background. I feel it would’ve had more impact if the artist had zoomed out and captured more of the street and buildings to add more to the story of the image. Still, a good image and another highly commended shot. Well done!"


We'd like to thank Roy for kindly taking the time to judge this the entries. If you'd like to see Roy's work then you can check it out on Instagram - look for dragonroy, or follow his photography page on Facebook – Roy Frankland Photography.

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