Container Contest
1st Place - Diane Escalante
Container Contest
2nd Place - Diane Escalante
Container Contest
3rd Place (Tie) - Audrey Barnes
Container Contest
3rd Place (Tie) - Linda Turnbull
View of a Garden
1st Place - Diane Escalante
A beautiful, vibrant garden is shown very well in this image. The rock wall begins in a corner and travels diagonally across the frame, which works well to draw the eye of the viewer into the image. I do like the greenhouse tucked away in the corner of the shot as well: besides being contextually appropriate, it makes a great visual anchor for the scene.
The partial bench also adds some balance to the scene, though the image would also work very well cropped to a 5 x 7” and excluding the bench.
A very well composed and executed image.
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View of a Garden
2nd Place - Audrey Barnes
This is a very well presented scene of a lush and beautiful section of a garden. The light is very well controlled, with highlights on the tree trunks and leaf edges to add depth and interest.
The rocks at the bottom of the frame and the trio of trunks at the top work nicely to frame in the scene naturally. I think I would have liked just a little more of the rocks showing to give a slightly more solid base, but it works well as it is.
I appreciate the array of purple painted ferns and the trio of red blossoms in the scene: they keep the image from being busy and overwhelming, giving the viewer some definite direction.
View of a Garden
3rd Place - Linda Turnbull
This very fine macro shot, though less of a view of a garden is certainly a beautiful capture of a small part of one! It is technically very good, with excellent focus and pleasing composition. Water droplets can add so much interest to shots like this, and they are used beautifully here: just enough to be interesting without overpowering the real theme of the shot, which is the long, sinewy structure of the flower itself.
Very good technique and a highly engaging subject.
Garden Design
1st Place - Audrey Barnes
Garden Design
2nd Place (Tie) - Linda Turnbull
Garden Design
2nd Place (Tie) - Audrey Barnes
Visitors in the Garden
1st Place - Heather MacKenzie
Not for the faint of heart… but this stark look at nature is a very striking image. The fact that the two birds are “mirrored” in their positions is a strong point to me. It would have been tempting to zoom in closer to the hawk, but it would then lose the context of scattered feathers and open ground, so I think this was the better choice.
The hawk’s eyes have a definite intensity looking at us, and they are sharply in focus, exactly as they should be. There is also excellent definition in the plumage.
Most definitely a powerful visitor to the garden!
Visitors in the Garden
2nd Place - Gillian Escalante
This image of a wasp (I think!) and flower is very well done. The insect and stamen are crisp and sharp as they should be, the petals themselves slightly softer, and the background pleasantly indistinct. The shadows and light differences on the petals also add interest. Good exposure, balanced composition and overall good technique all come together to make this a highly interesting image.
Visitors in the Garden
3rd Place - Susan Tamkin
This endearing image of a raccoon, framed perfectly by cedar boughs, is very engaging. It’s hard not to attribute human emotions to his pose and expression.
This would have been even better if the focus had been exactly on his eyes. As it is, it appears auto-focus picked the branches instead, so our subject is just a little soft. In any portrait, having the eyes in sharp focus is important to the viewer.
Nonetheless, this is a sweet, smile-inducing image of a visitor…
Garden Colour - Red
1st Place - Susan Tamkin
Lush, fiery, vibrant and beautiful… this image is very striking. I like the tight framing in this shot, with the contrast between the dark base and the bright, warm top half of the image.
An intense image, and a beautiful entry for the colour red.
Garden Colour - Red
2nd Place - Linda Turnball
The contrasts between the rich, deep red of the main subject and the delicate whites of the blossoms into which it’s settled make for a very pleasing scene. Focus is sharp where it should be, and lighting is very good (not easy in this situation). I really appreciate the gradient of light across the red blossom, from the bottom right to the upper left: I find it adds a nice dynamic touch to the image.
Garden Colour - Red
3rd Place - Ellen Berg
This is a whimsical view of a beautiful, snow-covered garden. The touches of red are subtle but do stand out in the scene quite nicely.
The natural frame of the tree branches is a nice touch. The whole image works very well. It would have also been a good addition to the “View of a Garden” category.