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MERIT. The line of the bridge and the slope of the hills is very dramatic, and this is a great vantage point for taking an image of this rugged landscape and the amount of work/man hours that would have been needed to build this bridge. I assume the photographer has added grain in post processing to give the image more of an edgy, or grungier feeling, which may have suited the feeling at the time the photo was taken. And kudos to you for trying something different. Does this work for me, I’m not sure that it does, although the more I look at the image and the more I try to understand why this was done the more I wonder if this was a good choice. I do like the heavy rolling cloud in the distance that gives a strong feeling of an approaching storm. I just feel like there is too much noise and grain.

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Honours. This image has been very well captured, and the title is very well suited. There is good detail across the whole image especially in the foliage. Which draws the eye beautifully into this space. There is some noise in the rocks, which has possibly come from lifting the shadows in post processing. Having tried to take similar images, I know how hard it can be to get the exposure in both the highlights and shadows perfect and something must give. Even with the use of exposure blending and taking several shots at different exposures, it can be difficult to blend them perfectly. I think the photographer has done a good job with this image, and I believe the noise is something that probably could not be easily avoided, as the dynamic range in this location far exceeds the capability of any camera.

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Merit. I enjoyed the connection between the 2 different pairs of people in the frame. The repetition of this connection provides for me a strong feeling of connection to the image. I wondered if a stronger contrast would have really made this image connect with me?

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Merit. I am unsure where the church is actually located but my wife’s aunty and uncle lived near Lowburn for many years until the construction of the Clyde Dam and the creation of lake Dunstan which took much of their farm land. I love the way you have created this image showing the white face of the frontage which contrasts with the dark background. Maybe the image could be more dominant in the frame to create a stronger emotional connection with the viewer?

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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.

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Merit. The strong shapes in the landforms, the trees on the skyline and the cloud formations are brought together in a striking scene. The monochrome treatment with grainy texture adds to the drama. The image is a bit too strongly vignetted for my taste but it does serve to concentrate interest in the main subject.

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Merit. Here we have it all, the old Kiwi bach, with it’s add on bit and in need of a bit of TLC. Parked in the drive the iconic caravan. The harsh lighting has created deep shadows on the side of the building and surrounding bush, you might try transferring the image to the Camera Raw filter in Photoshop and using the shadow slider to open up these shadows, giving the image a less harsh feeling. However, it does enhance the texture of the peeling paint and the stone wall of the buildings, while adding to the run down feeling of the old building. This scene is crying out for Golden Hour lighting to complete the nostalgia of the scene

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Honours It is always good when you can connect with an image emotionally. This photograph creates the emotion of a cold bleak wide open space. The composition and colour pallet are simple. There is the negative space of sky, with its shades of grey, that sets a bleak mood. Lower down we have the frost covered hills where the light and shadow has created contours over the hills giving them shape. In the foreground there the frost covered grassland adding a subtle brown tone to the image. To create a feeling of a wide open space the photographer has chosen a panoramic crop to the image.

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Achieved. I enjoy the contrast of the tones of the sky and the dry fields. I do find the colour noise and banding in the sky, as well as the fringing on the line between the land and sky lets the image down.

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Merit. I find your title cleverly leads us to the story of this image where we find the subject matter invisible in more ways than one - The photographer has chosen a point of view where the man’s eyes are hidden – I like this symbolism. I also find the choice of moment with backs turned and movement shown in passers by, effectively create layers of meaning. I did wonder whether a slight crop off the top and left might strengthen the image compositionally.

SSA_012_FACING THE ELEMENTS.jpg

Achieved. I found it difficult to see this as a tryptic as the black border that contained the three images also made the white spaces in between stand out. This immediately drew my eye to the lines though out the entire image and distracted me from the creative work done on the hills. I like the way each set of hills has been treated differently. Each has its own defined space yet is blocked in by the border. I feel that the black and white treatment could do with a bit more light to improve them and draw attention away from the white lines separating them.

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Achieved. The dark sky shows the promise of a storm brewing, yet the soft fluffy clouds don’t quite fit that narrative in my opinion. It feels to me that perhaps there was a lot of wind stirring up the waves however the use of a vignette has made the waves in the fore ground seem dull and dark. I like the band of green through the centre of the waves and feel the image would be stronger if this colour wasn’t dampened elsewhere. Composition wise the image is good; my eye is taken on a journey around the image from the misty hills to the fluffy clouds.

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Honours. I can really feel an intense coldness in this frosty scene. I felt all the elements from the tonality in all areas, the fog rolling in from top left the frost settled on the ground, the widespread frost across the entire image, all contributed to making this such an excellent image. In my opinion a well composed and presented image.

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Merit. I enjoyed the placement of the red surfboard as it gave me a strong sense that the board is the main element of the image. The colour contrast also makes the board stand out to me as the main element. I liked the connection of the long beach with the board through the placement of the couple walking along beach. I also wondered where the surfer might be – it kind of raised in my mind the story on the remote Waikato beach where the dad and his children were the subject of a lengthy search and rescue effort. Overall, I enjoyed the image for the questions it raises about the location of the owner of the surfboard. For me, I felt the tonality was a little flat and that increasing the contrast of the image would have given me a stronger connection

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Achieved. There is plenty to discover in this image. The clouds act as a giant soft box to prevent blown highlights yet allow the side lighting to create gentle shadows. Good title, with what to me is a double meaning. I enjoyed the animals and can almost hear their feet clip clopping along.

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Honours. At first viewing I thought this was a mirror shot, but a careful look revealed that it is not. The optical trick, of the reflection of the steps in the glass each side to make the steps look wider and accentuate the perspective, is clever. Well done for leaving this in colour. In my opinion, some images just look better in colour and I think this is one of them. The focus point, on the hand rails at the top, is excellent to draw the eye up. Well captured details, (love the skylight and beams), the colour, shapes and patterns and the composition of the image – congratulations.

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Merit.

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Merit.

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Honours. The contrast of the lighthouse and the rockface peering through the darkness works well. I love the detail. Everything from the wee wooden fence to the jagged rock, is sharp. There is a great story here but also a bit of mystery,

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Honours. Brilliant capture. I love the way the sun-rays illuminate the water droplets adding life to the image. The canopy of green frames the fountain and it stands out wonderfully against the black background. Fantastic.

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Honours. I think this is a super piece of work. Partly high-key, with the dark figures well placed and in turn balanced by the dark intrusion two thirds the way up the left margin. I think from the repeat of the sail this is actually two exposures, plus movement which has created streaks from the sparkles. Whether that is right doesn't matter. What matters is a very attractive result, very well composed in the strong vertical format. Congratulations.

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Honours. We don't do enough of this type of work, interpreting by selection the artistry of architects. I feel that this is very strong because it is simple, yet full of interest in the patterns created in the tiles, and because of the less precise patterns in the reflections selected by the photographer, culminating in the plainness of the reflected sky which becomes the focal point. All is contained in a format totally in keeping with the subject. Congratulations.

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Merit. A creative option – nice to see. Could play with the contrast slightly

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Honours. Great shot – would have cropped it even a little tighter for impact.

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Honours. Excellent detail and bold use of colour! Razor sharp where it needs to be. Really enjoyed the tight edge to edge composition/framing. Only small improvement would be to loose the purple in the bottom righthand corner. Great shot!

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Merit. Really enjoying the combination of blur, movement and sharpness. As well as the subtle colour palette. Would have gone even higher if the image was cropped on the left (so that the surfer wasn’t looking out of the frame) and if the sky wasn’t quite so heavy.

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Achieved. I like the pleasing composition, the moody feel and the pylon which adds interest. I would suggest a closer crop to draw more attention to the interesting tones and shapes around the pylon. In my view, I find the double imagery distracting, perhaps more blur to make it a little abstract or impressionistic may have worked better. Lovely colours and tones

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Merit. I like the creativity, the feel of this and the almost apprehensive expression on her face! I think this treatment is different and interesting. I find the eyelets on her sweater are rather distracting, they could be cloned out. I would also suggest cropping some off the base and try bringing just a small hint of detail into that very dark area.

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Achieved. oh dear, how upsetting to see this happening. This tells a sad tale. I wonder if cropping in from the left would give more impact just showing three poles.

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Achieved. the light on the water and boulders is magical and mono suits the atmospheric mood you have presented. However, I’m seeing little black spots lower left and others in the sky which my eyes go too. In the sky they may be birds but certainly not distinguishable and the lower left could be pebbles which is a shame as this is a beautiful image. Using the Spot Healing tool would eliminate these.

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Acceptance. An intriguing tableau. This scene offers up a glimpse of another culture. A collection of apparently disparate items, a boulder, a stone vessel, wagon wheels, tree rings and then a pram; the link, a rope that seems to literally and figuratively tie them together. The intrusion at the bottom of the frame by the purple flowers and a partial tree ring on the left, are to me irritants, interrupting what could have been a scene with seamless harmony.

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Honours. A well-managed ‘street photograph’ that fully meets the set subject of food photography. Having tried a number of these style of images with little success, I think this photographer has captured the space, the action and this rather lovely looking girl really well – I can almost feel the steam, and smell the hot dogs.

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Acceptance. I love the colours of this image and I feel that there is interesting detail. In my view there is a lot of noise - some colour aberration too. This has been caused by either a high ISO or cropping it. I wonder if maybe it is a high ISO as it is sunrise. I like the composition with the bridge on the diagonal giving it depth and perspective, in my opinion. The mountains add to the structure.

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MERIT. I wouldn’t like to be faced with those eyes. I feel the depth of field has been well handled with the dog’s face sharp and showing the detail. I suggest darkening some of the white on its nose and paws so that even more attention would go to the eyes which I feel would give even more impact. The eye colour is amazing.

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Achieved. The choice to angle this image has created a dynamic feel within this image and the monochrome helps to define the shapes and keeps it simple. I feel the white line in the foreground intrudes just a little too much. A good acceptance.

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Not Achieved. Potential here as the subject has been taken in mid air for a good action shot, however the image is soft or has been cropped very heavily. Even when the subject is ‘in camera’, I would expect an image like this to be sharp. I feel the white sky as a background feels overly bright and overwhelms the subject.

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Acceptance. This is a complex scene to start off, with people and many building shapes and details. Then it is made more complex with the superimposed repeated parts of the image, particularly the people. I can see that the repetition is used to suggest memories, but overall I feel the composition falls into two halves - it is hard for the eye to settle on an overall design. The BW treatment is a good idea – in colour this would probably become even more complex. A very good idea here, but hard to resolve into a unified image, I feel.

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Acceptance. A very pleasant, calm landscape, with some lovely soft colours in the sky and sea. I find the amount of green hillside in the foreground a bit distracting, and less interesting, and wonder if you considered cropping the lower part of the image (say just above the little cliff shape), to make a wider panorama? That would put more attention on the sea and sky, less on the foreground?

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ACHIEVED. What a fabulous sky you have chosen to capture. I really like the way it fades to the darker blue and green tones at the top of the image. In my view I wonder if the bottom area of the image might have been more effective left darker without any detail – just forming a dark base to set off the mist and sky, it looks like it has perhaps been lightened a bit which I find has detracted from the quality of the image. My screen also showed up quite a few dust spots in the sky. This has led to the image being marked down a few notches. I do love the lines of golden clouds leading our eye up through the image.

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MERIT. I really love the composition for this image with the house with smoke coming out of it’s chimney sitting beautifully below the milky way. I do wonder if a slight crop off the left side where I notice the distortion of the stars might be worth considering. There is also a building just clipping the right hand edge and some lighter patches near the bottom of the image that might be worth tidying up to lift the image that last notch. This image was well worth sitting out in the cold for.

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Merit. To me the bottom ripples are an essential part of your composition. I like it but find the central horizon annoys me. I suggest you consider cropping the top quarter off as this is not adding any interest area. The resulting panoramic format then suits the calm water and peaceful mood nicely.

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Honours. Well composed of 5 visual lines, both diagonal and horizontal, and I love the mood you have captured. To me, the pylon is perfectly placed.

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Achieved. The low angle you have taken this shot from has given the building a majestic look and the deer at the base, a sense of perspective. The angle of your frame is also echoing the shape of your building roof. Nicely exposed. The only small thing I would like to suggest is to tone down the white area in the top right.

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Achieved. This is a lovely soft portrait of Maiko in traditional costume. I like her pose which is in keeping with the demure look. The curve of her headgear is echoed in the curve of her hair as well as the curve of her hand position. I'm not sure if it's her make up that is causing the blue cast on the lower part of her face or if it is a reflection from the Navy kimono, but once I had seen it, it started to distract me. Nice soft background colour has complimented your image.

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Merit. A story here with all the bits and pieces around the place. I enjoy the shaft of light coming through and down leading us to the man. In my opinion though the image appears a little tilted and I feel that it would benefit from a slight straightening. It feels to be leaning right. The lighting has been well handled and I find myself wanting to know what the guy is reading. The image holds my attention. Well done.

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Merit. This also made me smile. Well captured by the photographer. The 'action' shot and by the look of things, a very happy dog. Good perspective and we can feel the energy of the dog. Good lighting and nothing to distract us. A very engaging image for the viewer and a feel good mood. If anything, I might suggest a slight increase in saturation to give that extra boost to the colour. Well seen and captured.

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INELIGIBLE This image has been incorrectly sized, and may not be deemed eligible for judging.

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MERIT It's an interesting angle you have chosen to take the shot with, it's quite striking. I like the interaction between the men who share a similar ethnicity. The produce in the background adds to the story of why the men are there. The grey sky is a good neutral background and because you have got down low the turbans and faces of the men standout well as the main point of interest. I was wondering if you might consider removing half the amount of sky, which would tighten up the image, but I also like all the sky, it has grown on me. Thus, it is your choice

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HONOURS Well seen! The colours of both the fruit and the clothing make this image. Exposure is great and makes the colours stand out. The bowl of fruit on the left balances the image and is necessary. You could have possibly included all the bowl. The fact that you have caught the woman eyeing you somewhat suspiciously is great.