Tag Archives: Set subject

30 January 2025 (Set Subject Round 1 – Buildings)

Posted on by
Reply

Our last meeting in January was the first round of our 3-part set subject competition, on the theme of “Buildings”. Mike Clark had kindly volunteered to judge this competition. 

There were 42 entries from 14 members.  Mike described what he liked about each image and also gave some suggestions for improvement. He particularly liked images where the photographer had thought outside the box to post something unusual, such as Karen Woodcock’s unusual view of a building that made it look like a face looking down or Gavin Marshall’s “Witches Cottage” decorated for Halloween. Mike commented on the composition of each image. There were some compositions where there was a path that was cut off at the edge of the frame and it would have been be nice to have see more of that path. He also pointed out some distracting objects that were cut in half at the edge.  Mike recommended that we try to compose an image so there is a separation between the components. Could a different viewpoint have separated those overlapping chimneys or towers, for example? He also commented on some converging verticals and recommended that long buildings that dominate the horizon be photographed straight on, so they will look more natural on a straight horizon.  Overall, members had submitted some good quality and innovate images, and there were a lot of high marks. The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (50 points)
    • Carol Edmond
    • Jim Innes
  • 4th place (51 points)
    • Steven Beard
    • Gavin Marshall
    • John West
    • Karen Woodcock
    • Melanie Gallacher
  • 3rd place (53 points)
    • Malcolm Roberts
    • Jennifer Davidson
  • 2nd place (55 points)
    • Derek Muller
  • 1st place (57 points)
    • George Todd

The top images were:

  • Corbiere Lighthouse (George Todd) – 20 points
  • Dawn (Jennifer Davidson) – 20 points
  • V and A Dundee (Melanie Gallacher) – 20 points
  • Toronto (George Todd) – 19 points
  • Old to New, Boston (Derek Muller) – 19 points
  • Are you looking down on me? (Karen Woodcock) – 19 points
  • Natural History Museum 1 (Malcolm Roberts) – 18 points
  • Himeji Castle Member (Malcolm Roberts) – 18 points
  • Botanical Gardens (Steven Beard) – 18 points
  • Baltimore Lighthouse (Steven Beard) – 18 points
  • KotelInicheskaya (George Todd) – 18 points
  • Reflective Towers (John West) – 18 points
  • Hospice of Soutra (Carol Edmond) – 18 points
  • Jedburgh Abbey Sunny Day (Jim Innes) – 18 points
  • Small Buildings (Derek Muller) – 18 points
  • Taj Mahal Sunrise (Derek Muller) – 18 points
  • Clifftop Buildings (Jennifer Davidson) – 18 points

Well done to George Todd, who wins the right to judge next year’s competition. And well done to everyone who entered. This is just the first round out of 3, and the overall winner is the one who has the highest marks from their best two rounds. So the competition is still open, and there are a lot of members following closely behind the leading pack.

11 January 2024 (Set Subject Competition A – Macro)

Posted on by

Happy New Year to Musselburgh Camera Club members! Our first meeting after the Christmas Break was the first of our 3 set subject competitions, on the theme of “Macro”. Unfortunately, I was at home with Covid and missed the competition, but I look forward to the top images appearing on our Facebook page. Thank you to Ed for taking the following notes:

There were 42 entries from 14 members for this competition. Most of the subject matter included flora and fauna, but there were a couple of unusual items from imaginative photographers. George started out by talking about the various definitions for Macro
Photography, but settled on the subject being photographed at Life size
or greater magnification. While George was going through the images he pointed out a couple of recurring issues. The first was that removing distractions should absolutely be done, but that it should be done carefully. There were a couple of instances of less than perfect cloning that spoiled otherwise strong images. Distractions around the edges should also be taken removed. The other recurring comment was about cropping choices, where
the photographer had cropped ends of insect legs off, or otherwise chopped bits of the subject and that can look awkward. On the other extreme, there were a few images that had a subject that was quite a small part of the whole image and these could perhaps have been cropped harder. Artificial light sources are often used for Macro shots to provide enough light, but that can give rise to other issues on wet or very reflective surfaces – consider diffusing the light source or, perhaps use a polarizing filter. The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (50 points)
    • Joe Fowler
    • John West
    • Jim Innes
  • 4th place (51 points)
    • Mike Clark
    • Elaine Gilroy
    • Derek Muller
  • 3rd place (52 points)
    • Malcolm Roberts
  • 2nd place (53 points)
    • Jennifer Davidson
  • 1st place (54 points)
    • Gordon Davidson

The top images were:

  • Fly on a leaf (Palpada) Hover Fly (Gordon Davidson) – 20 points
  • Shield Beetle Laying Her Eggs (Jennifer Davidson) – 19 points
  • Jumping Spider (Malcolm Roberts) – 19 points
  • Nigella Seed Head (Elaine Gilroy) – 19 points
  • Busy Bee Collecting pollen (Gordon Davidson) – 18 points
  • X-rated (common red soldier beetles) (John West) – 18 points
  • Fly (Common Green Bottle Fly) (Jim Innes) – 18 points
  • Honey Bee Side On (Derek Muller) – 18 points

Well done to Gordon Davidson, who wins the right to judge another competition next year. This is the first of a 3-part competition, with the final result depending on the total score from the best 2 competitions. With only 4 points separating the first 5 places, anything could happen. Part B of the competition takes place on 29th February 2024.

  • George Todd is still collecting prints for the “Human Portrait” competition. If you can produce 3 mounted prints please let George know and bring them along next Thursday.
  • Next week we will be discussing mobile phone photography.

05 January 2023 (Set Subject Competition A – Castles)

Posted on by

We returned after the Christmas break to the first of our 3 set subject competitions: competition A on the subject of “Castles”.  The competition was judged by Joe Fowler, who had won the competition in 2022.  Joe explained that he judges photographs based on two factors: composition and light. Composition is important. Don’t just point a camera at a castle and press the shutter, walk around the castle and see how it looks from different angles. Can you avoid any distractions by using a different viewpoint? Lighting is equally important. How is the light shining on the castle, and which viewing angle would make the best use of the lighting? Choose your time of day carefully, as bright lighting can overexpose your sky, and dull lighting can make the sky boring (although some members had got around this by using sky replacement).  Joe recommended everyone be their own judge. Look at your work and imagine how you would describe it as a judge.

45 images had been entered by 15 members.  Joe commented on the composition and lighting of each image. There were some images where the prime subject (the castle) was too far away and not prominent enough. Some images could have been taken from a better angle, and Joe pointed out examples where the direction of view didn’t match the direction of the light, which created a “one dimensional” image with only half the castle properly lit. There were also some distractions, such as a modern ice cream van in front of Edinburgh castle or an ugly white gun in front of Eilean Donan castle. In some cases the sky replacement had created a conflict. If you add a new feature to an image make sure the light and shadows match, and if you add a new sky check that it matches the reflection in the water.  Joe also pointed out that many images had trees and bushes blocking the foreground and detracting from the view of the castle.  So, next time you photograph a castle you have a choice: either take some walking boots so you can walk around and find the best view, or take a chainsaw so you can remove any trees that block your view!

The scoring was very close, and the top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (48 points)
    • Stephen Williams
    • Derek Muller
  • 4th place (49 points)
    • Malcolm Roberts
    • Gordon Davidson
    • John West
    • Jim Innes
  • 3rd place (50 points)
    • Carol Edmund
  • 2nd place (52 points)
    • Steven Beard
    • Mike Clark
  • 1st place (55 points)
    • George Todd

The top images were:

  • Through the Valley to Dunnotar Castle (George Todd) – 20 points
  • Tantallon Castle (Carol Edmund) – 20 points
  • Edinburgh Castle Lights (Mike Clark) – 19 points
  • Eilean Donan (Jim Innes) – 19 points
  • Dunottar Castle (Malcolm Roberts) – 18 points
  • Hailes Castle (Steven Beard) – 18 points
  • Sunset of Tantallon Castle (George Todd) – 18 points

Well done to George Todd, who wins the right to judge yet another competition next year.  This is the first of a 3-part competition, with the final result depending on the total score from the best 2 competitions; and with so many members getting good scores this still leaves the trophy open to anyone. The next part of the competition takes place in 3 weeks time, on 26th January 2023.

And on that subject, I have to point out a mistake in my previous message. This week is not the hand-in date for the human portrait print competition. It is the hand-in date for the next set subject competition. Please send your 3 JPEG images on the theme of “wildlife” to George Todd as soon as possible. (Human portrait prints are not needed until 23rd February 2023 – panic over).

Next week we are hosting the “Match an Image” competition, with North Berwick Photographic Society as our special guests. This competition is too complex to host by Zoom, so I hope as many members as possible will join us in room G6 at Fisherrow. The session starts at 7pm on Thursday, 12th January 2023.