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Weekly Photo Contest: 14th-21st October 2017 - Go With the Flow
- Thread starter anotherscotsman
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Yosemite...somewhere in 2010 with an iPhone 4 
![CB3D3467-74CE-46CC-8A53-A0BAD0476CB0.jpeg]( "CB3D3467-74CE-46CC-8A53-A0BAD0476CB0.jpeg")
Yep. Ok know I am not supposed to comment but the composition on the shot is really nice and didnt want you throwing away a chance for a wonky horizon. Looks lovely now.
day 25/365 || jan 25 - Twin Peaks, SF
Brandywine Falls
This is 15 minutes from my house and I still have never shot there. It is a beautiful park.
It's always good for a laugh when someone else has to judge; and all the entrants are praying for 2nd place
Cheers
Hugh
You get no sympathy from us.
It's always good for a laugh when someone else has to judge; and all the entrants are praying for 2nd place
Cheers
Hugh
you made my evening. Was exactly thinking about that.Thanks again everyone who submitted. Good range of interpretation of the theme but a couple that were unfortunately a too far off-theme. Given the quality and quantity of great images, I'm going to err on the side of harshness in my comments (and I'm in that sort of mood given the current weather) but please keep in mind that these are simply my comments so take them with a liberal pinch of the requisite condiment. Right, here goes.
Janichsan: Really good idea which shows a couple of things; nice flow patterns in the water and the cleansing power of water to sweep away debris. To be critical, reflected light is a little too bright and might have benefited a bit by a change in angle or perhaps a bit of polarisation but given that this is an opportunistic shot, likely little you could have done. Nice.
Kenoh : Far more than a placeholder. I'd say it's on theme since mist/cloud is largely composed of water (by mass) and it is this mist that is flowing over the surface of the hills. Shows a gentle form water flow and the role that cloud takes in good landscape shots. You've captured Scotland in a nicely composed and exposed shot.
HeadTrip: Certainly on theme. I really like the relatively unusual side-view for a waterfall shot. A good choice of shutter speed to capture the movement in the water without it blurring into a featureless white blob. I like the diagonal composition and you've managed to avoid too much blown-out highlights from the sky whilst capturing a good variation in local lighting. Nice one.
Hughmac: Again, on theme. I like the industrial history as background and the impression that water flow is (relatively) timeless - still providing fresh water a century after the industrial usage stopped. I really like the composition overall but to be critical, the post-processing is a little heavy handed for my taste and although it sounds counterintuitive, for me the strong vignette actually takes away attention from the well and draws my eye to the impact of the overall frame.
Deep Diver: Again on theme. You've certainly captured the power of a cascade of water with a good choice of shutter speed to capture that feeling of energy. The high contrast mono treatment again emphasises a dynamic scene. Whilst it is clearly more of an abstract take, I find it a little difficult to warm to the composition - perhaps that's the point you are trying to make! Again in keeping with the abstract nature, there is little to give a sense of scale. Nice one.
CmdrLaForge: Again on theme. A pretty, tranquil shot with lots of interest around the scene, held together by the line of the stream. The tree stump is perhaps a little distracting and although I obviously can't see what else is around the scene, it might have been worth getting your feet wet composing more up the line of the stream. Like it.
Oblomow: A lovely forest scene. The light streaming through the trees to form puddles on the forest floor is great. The addition of a person in one of those puddles really gives a sense of tranquility to the scene. Great forest photo but unfortunately not in line with the theme this week - there is no water flowing (discounting that within the trees themselves). Your original post, which I also liked, would have qualified nicely as a more abstract take on the theme.
Apple fanboy: Certainly on theme. I like how you have captured the two cascades of the fall and the pool beneath. Judging from the flow and the overall feel of dampness, I'd guess this was not long after rain on a cool winters day. Certainly a cold, almost stark feeling to the shot overall. The haziness around the falls highlights the amount of spray being generated by the rapid flow. To be critical, the featureless sky might be better removed by cropping just above the bridge and a little off the bottom to remove the pool bank, this would make the scene less stark (if that's what you want) and give more focus to the falls and bridge. Like it.
AlexanderofOz: Like Deep Diver, a high contrast mono treatment that gives the viewer a sense of the energy of flow although not as chaotic as that of Deep Diver's splash. The treatment works very well to highlight the wet rocks and the bits of branches give us an idea of scale. I like the composition with the contrast between the relatively barren, sterile rocks on the right with the more organic surface coating on the left (algae, moss etc) separated by the cascade. Would this also work in colour?
mollyc: On theme and certainly a bit different. Kids and adults alike love playing with water whether from a water pistol or a garden hose. A nice, natural shot that captures the fun aspects of water on holiday - I'm just waiting for that bucket-load to hit the camera, a waterproof one I hope! Nice one.
Someoldguy: A very nice woodland scene. Lovely colours and tones and I like how you have composed looking downstream - the perspective emphasises the river flowing away from you to who knows where. To be critical, from a theme perspective, the only thing that may be a little lacking is the sense of dynamic - the reflected trees and overall tranquil nature of a forest approaching autumn are more dominant to me here. Nevertheless, a lovely photo.
Karnicopia: Again, on theme. The rocks and plant emphasise that this is a detail shot but despite the small scale, it gets across the feeling of water movement very nicely. I like the composition with an almost hourglass shape to the water and the near symmetry given by the rocks. Simple but effective. I don't know if it is my eyes or the slime or water movement but is the left-hand rock slightly out of focus?
Naturebug: Welcome to the competition! A nice tranquil scene with waves lapping onto the shore. Nice sunset colours with the groynes and structure giving a good sense of scale and interest. The groins emphasise the power of waves to shape the shoreline with what we see today simply being a snapshot in time. Particularly with photos that involve water, it is worth checking for horizontal horizons.
Akashi.nu: Great shot that captures the energy of this waterfall very well. I like the perspective whereby the falls seem to come out of a sliver of river that disappears into the frame. Despite the high water flow, there is still enough detail in the water to give a good texture to the flow with the rocks breaking up that flow. Not much to distract the viewer from the clear focus of the shot - the falls. Nice one.
Susurs: At first glance I thought that this was in mono but obviously is not. Composition gives a good feeling of the scale of the fall and leaves the viewer wondering what happens to the water after this? The snow and overall tone of the shot certainly give a wintery feel to the scene. Shows what an old phone can do!
OzBok: Certainly on theme. I like how you have captured two senses of flow in this scene; the falls and the swirl pattern in the pool. Given the long exposure time needed to capture the swirl, there is still enough detail in parts of the falls to avoid a total blur and retain interesting texture. I like the very moody atmosphere you've portrayed giving a sort of secret /hidden location feel to the shot. Whilst I like the contrast in colour and texture that the overhanging rock brings, I'm in two minds about whether it adds to or detracts from the image but it is part of the scene. Lovely.
Needfx: Certainly dynamic water! Waves crashing onto rocks certainly gets across the power of water. I like the composition and the way you've captured the spray - good choice of shutter speed. I don't know if this is a deliberate choice in post or an artefact of the shooting conditions, but a lot of noise in the photo.
Butch10x: A great blue-hour long exposure of the San Francisco area. The car light trails are crisp and the balance between artificial and ambient lighting is spot-on. Tons of detail everywhere in the scene and a great overall composition. Great flow of vehicles but unfortunately not on theme. There is obviously water in the scene but nothing that gives any sense of water-dynamic. Fantastic photo nonetheless.
Indydenny: On theme with a nice side view of the falls. You've captured the flow nicely with plenty of detail in the flow over the steps in the rock. Nicely composed with few distractions but still showing the falls in their environment and their scale. The people at the foot of the falls certainly add to the shot. If the waterfalls are not in a gully or ravine or deep forest, it can be difficult to handle the extremes of contrast that overhead sun can bring. It might be worth looking to bracket this scene to bring out a bit more detail in the dark right side of the photo. Alternatively try at another time of day (or on a grey day) to minimise contrast. Nevertheless, a really nice photo.
With such a great set of entries I've really scratched my head on this but in the end I have to give some sort of ranking.
Honourable mentions: Kenoh, Apple fanboy and mollyc
3rd: Akash.nu
2nd: HeadTrip
1st: OzBok
Congratulations and thanks to everyone who submitted and over to the winner for the next theme.
Janichsan: Really good idea which shows a couple of things; nice flow patterns in the water and the cleansing power of water to sweep away debris. To be critical, reflected light is a little too bright and might have benefited a bit by a change in angle or perhaps a bit of polarisation but given that this is an opportunistic shot, likely little you could have done. Nice.
Kenoh : Far more than a placeholder. I'd say it's on theme since mist/cloud is largely composed of water (by mass) and it is this mist that is flowing over the surface of the hills. Shows a gentle form water flow and the role that cloud takes in good landscape shots. You've captured Scotland in a nicely composed and exposed shot.
HeadTrip: Certainly on theme. I really like the relatively unusual side-view for a waterfall shot. A good choice of shutter speed to capture the movement in the water without it blurring into a featureless white blob. I like the diagonal composition and you've managed to avoid too much blown-out highlights from the sky whilst capturing a good variation in local lighting. Nice one.
Hughmac: Again, on theme. I like the industrial history as background and the impression that water flow is (relatively) timeless - still providing fresh water a century after the industrial usage stopped. I really like the composition overall but to be critical, the post-processing is a little heavy handed for my taste and although it sounds counterintuitive, for me the strong vignette actually takes away attention from the well and draws my eye to the impact of the overall frame.
Deep Diver: Again on theme. You've certainly captured the power of a cascade of water with a good choice of shutter speed to capture that feeling of energy. The high contrast mono treatment again emphasises a dynamic scene. Whilst it is clearly more of an abstract take, I find it a little difficult to warm to the composition - perhaps that's the point you are trying to make! Again in keeping with the abstract nature, there is little to give a sense of scale. Nice one.
CmdrLaForge: Again on theme. A pretty, tranquil shot with lots of interest around the scene, held together by the line of the stream. The tree stump is perhaps a little distracting and although I obviously can't see what else is around the scene, it might have been worth getting your feet wet composing more up the line of the stream. Like it.
Oblomow: A lovely forest scene. The light streaming through the trees to form puddles on the forest floor is great. The addition of a person in one of those puddles really gives a sense of tranquility to the scene. Great forest photo but unfortunately not in line with the theme this week - there is no water flowing (discounting that within the trees themselves). Your original post, which I also liked, would have qualified nicely as a more abstract take on the theme.
Apple fanboy: Certainly on theme. I like how you have captured the two cascades of the fall and the pool beneath. Judging from the flow and the overall feel of dampness, I'd guess this was not long after rain on a cool winters day. Certainly a cold, almost stark feeling to the shot overall. The haziness around the falls highlights the amount of spray being generated by the rapid flow. To be critical, the featureless sky might be better removed by cropping just above the bridge and a little off the bottom to remove the pool bank, this would make the scene less stark (if that's what you want) and give more focus to the falls and bridge. Like it.
AlexanderofOz: Like Deep Diver, a high contrast mono treatment that gives the viewer a sense of the energy of flow although not as chaotic as that of Deep Diver's splash. The treatment works very well to highlight the wet rocks and the bits of branches give us an idea of scale. I like the composition with the contrast between the relatively barren, sterile rocks on the right with the more organic surface coating on the left (algae, moss etc) separated by the cascade. Would this also work in colour?
mollyc: On theme and certainly a bit different. Kids and adults alike love playing with water whether from a water pistol or a garden hose. A nice, natural shot that captures the fun aspects of water on holiday - I'm just waiting for that bucket-load to hit the camera, a waterproof one I hope! Nice one.
Someoldguy: A very nice woodland scene. Lovely colours and tones and I like how you have composed looking downstream - the perspective emphasises the river flowing away from you to who knows where. To be critical, from a theme perspective, the only thing that may be a little lacking is the sense of dynamic - the reflected trees and overall tranquil nature of a forest approaching autumn are more dominant to me here. Nevertheless, a lovely photo.
Karnicopia: Again, on theme. The rocks and plant emphasise that this is a detail shot but despite the small scale, it gets across the feeling of water movement very nicely. I like the composition with an almost hourglass shape to the water and the near symmetry given by the rocks. Simple but effective. I don't know if it is my eyes or the slime or water movement but is the left-hand rock slightly out of focus?
Naturebug: Welcome to the competition! A nice tranquil scene with waves lapping onto the shore. Nice sunset colours with the groynes and structure giving a good sense of scale and interest. The groins emphasise the power of waves to shape the shoreline with what we see today simply being a snapshot in time. Particularly with photos that involve water, it is worth checking for horizontal horizons.
Akashi.nu: Great shot that captures the energy of this waterfall very well. I like the perspective whereby the falls seem to come out of a sliver of river that disappears into the frame. Despite the high water flow, there is still enough detail in the water to give a good texture to the flow with the rocks breaking up that flow. Not much to distract the viewer from the clear focus of the shot - the falls. Nice one.
Susurs: At first glance I thought that this was in mono but obviously is not. Composition gives a good feeling of the scale of the fall and leaves the viewer wondering what happens to the water after this? The snow and overall tone of the shot certainly give a wintery feel to the scene. Shows what an old phone can do!
OzBok: Certainly on theme. I like how you have captured two senses of flow in this scene; the falls and the swirl pattern in the pool. Given the long exposure time needed to capture the swirl, there is still enough detail in parts of the falls to avoid a total blur and retain interesting texture. I like the very moody atmosphere you've portrayed giving a sort of secret /hidden location feel to the shot. Whilst I like the contrast in colour and texture that the overhanging rock brings, I'm in two minds about whether it adds to or detracts from the image but it is part of the scene. Lovely.
Needfx: Certainly dynamic water! Waves crashing onto rocks certainly gets across the power of water. I like the composition and the way you've captured the spray - good choice of shutter speed. I don't know if this is a deliberate choice in post or an artefact of the shooting conditions, but a lot of noise in the photo.
Butch10x: A great blue-hour long exposure of the San Francisco area. The car light trails are crisp and the balance between artificial and ambient lighting is spot-on. Tons of detail everywhere in the scene and a great overall composition. Great flow of vehicles but unfortunately not on theme. There is obviously water in the scene but nothing that gives any sense of water-dynamic. Fantastic photo nonetheless.
Indydenny: On theme with a nice side view of the falls. You've captured the flow nicely with plenty of detail in the flow over the steps in the rock. Nicely composed with few distractions but still showing the falls in their environment and their scale. The people at the foot of the falls certainly add to the shot. If the waterfalls are not in a gully or ravine or deep forest, it can be difficult to handle the extremes of contrast that overhead sun can bring. It might be worth looking to bracket this scene to bring out a bit more detail in the dark right side of the photo. Alternatively try at another time of day (or on a grey day) to minimise contrast. Nevertheless, a really nice photo.
With such a great set of entries I've really scratched my head on this but in the end I have to give some sort of ranking.
Honourable mentions: Kenoh, Apple fanboy and mollyc
3rd: Akash.nu
2nd: HeadTrip
1st: OzBok
Congratulations and thanks to everyone who submitted and over to the winner for the next theme.
What a colossal job you did with the judging and feedback @anotherscotsman ! Congrat's to the winners and looking forward to what @OzBok has in store for us next.
well done all of you. Congrats 
Amazing photos this week. Well done to everyone!
Thanks for the honours @anotherscotsman, tough one to judge this week and great feedback too!!
Will post the new comp in the morning, getting late here in Aus.
Thanks for the honours @anotherscotsman, tough one to judge this week and great feedback too!!
Will post the new comp in the morning, getting late here in Aus.
Well done everyone and thanks for the honourable mention. Some stunning photos this month (as always!).
You were indeed right. It was a wet and miserable November day as I recall. Torrential rain nearly had me deciding not to head out with my camera, but as I had driven to the Lake District to take photos decided to man up and get on with it. Don't think it actually stopped, but at least I nearly had the place to myself!
Great feedback from @anotherscotsman and congratulations to the well-deserved winners.