SSA_097_ROYAL ARCADE.jpg

Honours. Very cool! There is a lot to see in this image and due to the composition, which is great, you really look into the image. The very low angle of the camera works very well, and I love the chest board pattern on the floor, along with the symmetry of the roof, with all lines leading to the archway and what I believe is the concierge desk at the centre of the image. Excellent capture that I can’t fault

OPA_097_MELBOURNE GRUNGE.jpg

Merit. A very artistic image, where intentional camera movement has been used to change a subject and make it your own. I like the colour tones and shades. The vertical movement of the camera, with what appears to be a corrugated iron subject, was a good choice. Your eye is naturally drawn to the lightest area of an image, which is in the middle of the frame, for me this area is a little too white and lacks the detail and lovely tones that are in the rest of the image. I would suggest trying to tone down or colourise the white, so it is not so obvious. Other than this, there is nice use of camera technic to create something different and artistic.

SSA_097_SUNSHINE ON A RAINY DAY.jpg

Merit. I found the way in which the hood provides a slight shadow to the eye area creates a sense of mystery for me about the person. The face radiates a feeling of happiness and sunshine in my opinion. I did find the highlights in the background to be a distraction from my enjoyment of the personality of the main character. Maybe a brush tool could have been used to burn down these highlights. For me, adjusting the tones in this way would have made the image exceptional for me.

OPA_097_MISTY TREES.jpg

Honours. I enjoyed the way you have used intentional camera movement to create an impressionist image. Nice hues, nice lighting and lovely hues. Nice image.

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.

OPA_097_BLOKES TIME OUT.jpg

Merit. This image evokes the feeling of solitude associated with fishing from a beach. He seems alone but not lonely, perhaps anticipating success. The letterbox format adds to the sense of reaching out beyond the surf to catch a fish. The horizon is not level and the halo artifacts around the fisherman and his rod are distracting.

SSA_097_FUSH AND CHUPS.jpg

Merit A clever take on our favourite takeaway, using the iconic Kiwi staple of Chocolate Fish, Potato Chips and home made Onion Dip. The way the chocolate fish are randomly laid over the chips looks like they have just been unwrapped from the paper. The monochrome treatment with the sepia toning gives the image and aged look.

OPA_097_BRICK AND BLUE.jpg

Achieved. Abstract relies on shape, patterns, and colour to make a statement. Here we have the red brick colour which creates a contrast with its complementary colour cyan/blue. The “ICM” (Intentional Camera Movement) has created a feeling of movement, blurring the white cages. My eye is drawn to the bright area and keeps yoyoing between the two not settling.

OPA_097_SEED STORAGE CENTRE.jpg

Merit. This image feel luxurious and rich. I immediately notice the seed center and love the clarity and quality of it. I am slightly distracted by the one lighter petal in the bottom left corner. I also wonder if a small crop off the darker RHside might add to the image.

SSA_097_SCRAMBLED.jpg

Honours. I find your choice of compositional texture, your choice of layering and your choice of sharpness and blur add up to create a strong story and clever statement. This is further enhanced by your title.

SSA_097_MULTI MIXUP.jpg

Achieved. An interesting abstract and the more I look at it, the more I see. In my opinion the image would be stronger if the photographer had put the brighter image underneath and each subsequent layer a little darker. This would have drawn me into the image instead of the bright centre pushing me out. Very creative

OPA_097_SLICE AND DICE.JPG

Merit. A nicely composed image of cheese and vegetables both sliced and diced. I enjoyed the play on words with the one piece made into a dice. In my opinion the vignette is a little heavy and detracts rather than adds to the image.

SSA_097_AS COLD AS STEEL.jpg

Merit. I am intrigued by the use of an edge line to create separation between the various ridges and spurs. These lines gave me sense of rhythm in the image as for me the image emphasises the repetition of the shapes of the spurs along the river. I felt that the use of edge lines in this way demonstrated a strong sense of creativity. I felt the way the edge lines worked well visually, as they helped me to see differences in textures between each spur. From a visual enjoyment point of view, I noticed some edge lines had a separation from their ridge lines on the right of the image. In my view, this detracted a little from your story.

OPA_097_POPPET.jpg

Achieved. For me an interesting portrayal of the character of this young person. I felt that the tonality of the image added to my uncertainty about the story. I wasn’t sure whether the gaze of the young lady was due to being surprised, whether she has been a little upset, or whether she is a strongly inquisitive person. I found the tonality on the young person’s face to add to the uncertainty I felt about the character/story about person. I wondered if the image would have had a stronger impact and given a clearer perspective for the story if it had been presented with a high key tonality.

OPA_097_CHRIS HIPKINS TOLD ME TO.jpg

Achieved. An image recently made, I think! Fun and quirky. The black and white treatment, has effectively simplified the scene and brought all the attention onto the figure. It is completely irrelevant what colour the clothing is. By using B&W the image becomes about shape. A fun response to Chris Hipkins’ slip up.

SSA_097_GLASSY.jpg

Merit. There is plenty to see in the detail of the layered glass panels, including reflections and shadows. I think it would be an installers’ and window cleaners’ nightmare! To simplify the image and emphasise the detail, the photographer has made a good decision to make the image black and white.

OPA_097_MY BACK DECK.jpg

Merit.

SSA_097_GAMES NIGHT.jpg

Achieved.

SSA_097_WATER CONTRAST.jpg

Merit. The movement of delicate waves dancing on the still water is very pretty. To strengthen the image, try cropping about a third of the white water from the bottom, focussing on those wonderful waves.

OPA_097_WAKATIPU HAZE.jpg

Honours. This is a glorious landscape. I love everything about it. Its softness is sublime. Just one look at it would make me relax. Beautiful!

SSA_097_EXPLORING UNDER A WATCHFUL EYE.jpg

Achieved. A good storyline and competent monochrome with a pretty full range of tones from black to white. With the two figures being left of centre and centre respectively the image is rather weighted to the left and you could consider some darkening of the right quarter to balance that up a little and help retain the eye. What I have to think about is whether the movement adds to the interpretation of the scene. I do like what it has done to the grass and it does add some air of mystery to the prospect of exploring, so perhaps it does.

OPA_097_STRAPS.jpg

Achieved. In spite of the lovely colours I find this too general to hold my attention. As mentioned earlier, I feel that in most cases a pattern needs to have a focal point, and although there are variations in colour here, they don't fall in the right places. The blues on either side tend to draw my eye and with the lesser impact of the central straps the image almost gets divided in two leaving one with a Marty Feldman feeling. I suggest that you consider a vertical cropping from the left to just exclude the first and brightest orangey one, i.e. including in the picture the brown one with the dark areas two thirds down. Now you are left with the strongest blue ones as a focal point and a format consistent with the subject. I still like your overall effect.

SSA_097_RIVERTON SUNRISE.jpg

Achieved. This image is just a bit muddy and there is a bit of detail lost in the shadow. It can be tweeked to show more detail but still retain the silhoutte effect.

OPA_097_SUNDAY MORNING DANCE PRACTICE.jpg

Achieved. A good face, good use of a shallow depth of field. Why black & white?

SSA_097_THE UPHILL BATTLE.jpg

Merit. Spot colour really brings the eye into the key subject. Framing gives the image somewhere to go in the images and the limited colours in the background keep the image simple and effective.

OPA_097_BURNOUT DEBRIEFING.jpg

Achieved. Good colours, tones and lighting. In my view, the image is rather busy; my eye is drawn to the mans arm and the girls in the car. They are taking up most of the image but they are looking away. For me the debriefing is with the people in the background. I feel the focus could have been on just one of those groups interacting with each other. I like the detail of the smoke in the sky which adds interest.

SSA_097_JODI.JPG

Merit. odi has a lovely relaxed pose and a great expression. Nice engagement with the photographer. My suggestions would be to try a tighter crop on the left side and a slight vignette to darken the edges and help your subject to ‘pop,’ and tone down the bright areas on her face. A nice portrait

SSA_097_PANDEMIC REALITY.jpg

Honours. This needed the title and gosh does it ever tell the Covid story. Simple story but told brilliantly, it needed to be in mono. Excellent work

OPA_097_SPUD SOWING DAY.JPG

Merit. This is very appealing, you’ve used a low angle which gives a more interesting perspective with excellent tonal range. My only negative comment is where the power line is, coming out of the drivers head. If you had changed your position a little this could have been rectified. Cloning out is another option. Well done.

SSA_097_FROM MY GARDEN.jpg

Merit. What a delightful bounty – peas in many shades! The angled composition works well, with all of the components sitting together in harmony. A reduction of the highlights will bring out the veining in the sweet peas (a lovely detail in these flowers). In general I prefer a darker vignette over a lighter one, the latter being a visual escape route for my eye, the former keeping my attention on the subject. A very enjoyable food tableau, with floral extras.

OPA_097_ONETANGI.jpg

Acceptance. Space and seaside energy has provided a perfect background for this colourful family outing. I particularly enjoyed the sense of scale. This is a large place populated by small people; a story about both significance and insignificance. I have had to ask myself about the texture, has its addition added or distracted from the narrative? Ultimately I felt it was the latter, for me the texture is just too obvious, too heavy. The weighty application has served to bury a simple and rather delightful story.

OPA_097_EXPLORING SAIGON.jpg

Not Achieved. At first I didn’t notice the people in this image as attention usually goes to the lighter parts and my eyes went to the area to the right and through the window to the sky. I feel more contrast when editing might have made a stronger image. The group has been well placed to the third and so creates a balance in my view. They add interest to the story.

SSA_097_GOT SOMETHING IN MY EYE.jpg

Acceptance. I chuckled both at the subject and the title. Well done for thinking outside the square and doing something different. I would have liked to see more of the needle in focus as it leads me to the eye. Even then there is only a small part in focus as the needle seems to be on a different plane from the camera. There appears to be some vignetting which, in my view holds the image together and gives it structure.The strands of some thread in the background I feel doesn’t support the composition and is distracting. A great idea.

OPA_097_WARM FUZZIES.jpg

Merit. The seed head on the right third draws my attention as it is the main focused area, and is well positioned. I find the lighter vignette may not be my personal preference, but I like the overall effect you have achieved with the limited depth of field.

SSA_097_ITS COMPLICATED.jpg

Merit. The concept is well seen or created. The fuzzy white areas may be slightly too prominent, although this provides an interesting contrast with the hard links of the interlocking chains.

OPA_097_TIME FOR A BREAK.jpg

Achieved. What a cluttered kitchen this is, with the clear subject of the image (and the title) being the man looking at his phone. Everyone else in the image has their backs or sides to us, so although there are lots of other people I don’t get any kind of connection to them, and the man walking away also obscures some of them anyway. The image isn’t the sharpest, and appears quite noisy. Exposure is good, and I do like the overall composition which does convey to me the feeling of what it must be like to work there.

SSA_097_TESS.jpg

Achieved. To me this is almost one of those classic fashion model poses, with Tess clearly engaged with the camera yet appearing to show little or no emotion. The image is nicely sharp where it should be – on the eyes, although I found it somewhat disconcerting that the catchlights were in different parts of each pupil, and pondered how that could happen. Perhaps from close-up on-camera fill-in flash? Her face is certainly well exposed, with the lighting looking a bit flat to me. I like the composition in the frame, with her face in a strong position, room in front of her, leading diagonal lines from the edge of the tree trunk and her hair and jacket all taking us back to her face. I also like the zip going neatly and exactly into the bottom left corner.

SSA_097_UNINVITED TOURISTS.jpg

Merit. I like the title – very topical for your district at present and for the viruses. This is a lovely view down the street of trees, with a very symmetrical composition, plus the added “tourists” that recede in size into the distance. Good contrast and focus, a very effective BW image – I just wish the “tourists” were a little brighter, to stand out more (that would make it an Honours, for me).

OPA_097_ONLY THE CLOCK LEFT TICKING.jpg

Merit. I see here an intricate pattern of lines and shapes, made slightly abstract by the monochrome treatment. The title draws attention to the clock and the nearby round shapes – without that the eye might wander without settling on a distinct centre of interest. Exposure and focus are suitable – the scene looks a bit static, but the title explains that.

SSA_097_THE ROAD TO CORENET.JPG

ACHIEVED. I appreciate your concept for this image and I love the hint of light leading through the ranges and the twinkling up on the mountains. For me the brightness of the image especially in the top left hand corner is a missed opportunity to showcase this twinkling. I find I do notice the chevron road sign which in my view doesn’t add anything to the image. I love the snowy mountains on the right side and the red of the tail lights in the bottom left.

SSA_097_SHADES OF BLUE.jpg

Honours. An intriguing architectural composition of horizontal and vertical lines with the addition of a human to add interest. Well done!

OPA_097_LEST WE FORGET.jpg

Not accepted. What I want to see here is some compositional creative input from the photographer and to me 2 red poppies is not enough. Without the poppies it is too much of a ‘record’ shot from an A grader. Sorry.

SSA_097_TWO LINKS IN A MELON CHAIN.jpg

Achieved. Catchy title. This is a different take on the subject of through the gap. Most images have the photographer looking through a gap to beyond but in this image beyond the gap is not visible, it is black. Here instead the interest is coming out of the gap in the form of melons. You have captured the action that tells the story. The image is well exposed well-balanced and the horizontal crop suits the subject. I like that it is black and white as it focuses more on the action rather than the colours.

OPA_097_LOCKDOWN - A TIME FOR REFLECTION.jpg

Achieved. A clever title and your image reflects that reflection. Well exposed with a pleasing wide view. As far as the eye is concerned it is quite a busy image and my eyes are travelling around all over feeling stressed looking for some where to settle. I would like to suggest that you crop off the base of the reflection up to the white roofline on the bottom right about one third of total reflection) also remove the frame as it is yet more white lines adding to the existing white lines. This is only a suggestion, try it and see what you think.

OPA_097_BRA FENCE, CARDRONA.JPG

Merit. Good angle leading you into the image, I would have liked to have something along the fence to stop your eyes running out the image on the left. As the sky is bright I find it distracts from the fence. So have a look at cropping it out.

SSA_097_THE SHOTOVER.JPG

Merit. A dramatic feel to the image, I do like the vertical format and the arch of the bridge frames the river. I would have liked to have seen a boat or kayak on the water to help give a focal point and some scale.

OPA_097_NEIGHBOURHOOD MEETING.jpg

Acceptance In my opinion this image would be much better in colour. The people are fine on the left had side but there is wasted space at the top and the bottom of the image.

SSA_097_GOLDEN PLUME.JPG

Honours. This image has great colour and good composition.

OPA_097_UNDER A WATCHFUL EYE.jpg

Merit This is imposing and I do feel a bit overpowered. Great stuff! The composition leads nicely from the bottom left and the viewer is drawn inexorably towards the eyes. Perhaps the photographer would consider providing a little more context or perhaps more foreground detail by going in closer to the body so that the individual bricks can be appreciated? There is a large amount of lost detail in the sky which perhaps could be brought back by decreasing the highlights? But this is a good attempt at showing another’s art in a unique way.

SSA_097_FLUFFY FLORA.jpg

Merit. I do enjoy the creativity through the use of contrasting colours and the feeling of being in a garden which is evoked by the background. I commend the photographer on the skilful use of DoF and the unobtrusive lead - in he/she provides from the left although I do find that the left hand stalk does arrest the eye. Focussing is pin sharp where it should be. I enjoy the water droplets which surprised me and added interest to the image.