SSA_012_FROSTED.jpg

Honours. A story of a neglected fence and gate emphasized by the wintry textures. The desaturation of colours adds to the mood and the angle of the fenceline adds visual interest to the composition.

SSA_097_SUNFLOWER STRUCTURE.jpg

Achieved. The contrasting textures in the left and right halves of the image add interest to the composition. The green shapes in the lower left corner and the white spots over much of the image are distracting.

SSA_140_Tui.jpg

Merit. Nicely presented feather textures. Dark subject against a light background adds depth to the image. Pity about the cut-off feet.

SSB_151_Bygone days.jpg

Merit. Interesting because textures have been used to amplify the story of old railway wagon wheels. The blue cast is distracting to me because it diminishes the lovely rusty textures and colours. Try reducing the blue tones for a stronger treatment.

SSA_064_CRUST and BUBBBLES.jpg

Merit. A well seen story of contrasting textures in ice, flowing water and bubbles. The human eye tends to read luminance from darker to lighter areas in a scene. In this image the main visual flow from left to right follows the flow of the water but is diminished by the contrary luminance flow. Try darkening the upper and lower parts of the image to reduce this effect.

SSB_138_Golden Reeds.jpg

Merit. The photgrapher has imbued this scene with a sense of movement that adds interest. The colour palette comprising complemetnary colours simplifies the image making it easier to see a story about the textures. Cropping some of the right side of the image could help concentrate interest, giving the image a stronger presence.

SSN_146_ROPE'S END.jpg

Merit. The red bouys attract attention away from the subtle colour tones and textures in the hanks of rope. The bouys are far enough apart that there is a ping-pong effect in which my eye is drawn from one to the other. Either of the left or right halves of the image would have more compositional integrity than the whole as presented. Otherwise nicely seen.

SSA_071_NATURE'S TAPESTRY.jpg

Achieved. The carpet plants provide a velvety backdrop for the spikier flowering plants in this image. The scene appears well lit but flat. The lighter hillock at the top of the image drew my attention away from the flowers and seems too close to the edge of the frame. Try converting the image to monochrome and applying different colour filters fto find a more dramatic treatment.

SSN_150_APOPHYSIS DECORUS.jpg

Achieved. The story for me is in the regularity of the pattern in the cone scales from left to right. The uniformity leaves me searching for some feature to hold my attention and stop my eye wandering out of the frame. Try subtlely vignetting the image so that the viewer’s attention is held in the image by a progression from darker at the edge to lighter in the middle.

SSN_144_kotahi te ngakau ukraine.jpg

Merit. The swirl of petals is nicely complemented by the use of a square format to contain the circular visual flow. The water droplets add interest to the story. In spite of the rich colours, the tonal range seems flat and lacking in contrast. This impression is confirmed by the lack of dark and light tones in the histogram. It should be possible to correct for this in post-processing.

SSA_095_SUNFLOWER SEEDS.JPG

Achieved. The story for me is the regularity of the pattern in flower parts reading from left to right. The uniformity leaves me searching for some feature to hold my attention. The image seems flat and lacking in lighter tones. Also the white spots are distracting. Try lifting the mid-tones for a more vibrant treatment.