Hey, all, now comes the dreaded part: passing judgement on my fellow forum members' work. Ugh, impostor syndrome in full force.
So a couple of notes before I get into it. I thought a lot about the potential difficulty of the assignment. A high-speed action photograph is a thing that's really difficult to land perfectly. Should I hold the image quality to the same standard as an image that could be more carefully arranged? In the end I've decided...almost. Thankfully I've got some great pics to choose from, where it wasn't that big a deal. Here we go...
@TheYayAreaLiving 🎗: Who doesn't love dolphins? When you see them in the water, unless they are completely still, they always seem like they're in a race. And smiling about it, of course. I think this is one of the photos I'm referencing...this was a tough photo to land, and you almost got it. I would have liked to see at least one of them more visible. I like that there really isn't a trace of the boat you're on (save for the angle, perhaps)...unless you're actually airborne, in which case, wow! I always like in water photos getting those little ripples where droplets land, though in this photo it kind of makes the action seem slower.
@Snowlover : This is a textbook example of what I was talking about. Literally a race, neck-and-neck, and even between a light horse and a dark one. This is another one where it was going to be tough to land, the highlights are a little blown out, but the toughest part was always going to be freezing the shot. More on this below, but in an action photo with lateral movement you don't really have to freeze everything in the frame, so long as there is something frozen. I think you did a pretty good job on the area that had to be in sharpest focus: from the eyes to the muzzle. At phone-screen-size, the only thing that's obviously a little soft is the background, and that's quite all right, the background SHOULD be soft to enhance the impression of motion.
@AppleKarma : Oh, it's storytelling time! I see two trees that grew up next to each other in a field. Robert was always the biggest, which really upset scrappy little Doug. Then one day, a developer came and built some buildings, and the tables turned! Robert was covered in shadow, and with the power of sunlight Doug overcame his physical limitations and...here he's almost caught up! It's the tree version of
Rudy! I don't know if you were going for the light/dark angle here in addition to the two-tall-trees-competing one, but that's what I see. Unfortunately it did lead to some blowout on the highlights of the buildings behind. I feel the framing might have been slightly better if you'd moved to the left a little, but that also would have affected the background, so maybe not.
@MrCheeto : Now here we come to a great example of what I was referencing above. Our subjects are pretty well captured. Even zoomed it they're reasonably frozen (the leader more so than the trailer). But look at the pavement flying by! This is classic. Other elements really lined up for you as well: heading into the sun they are both really well lit but for the most part you avoided blowing out the whites (maybe a little bit on 13's helmet), their angle and positioning was such that 113's shadow didn't impinge awfully on 13 behind him. And such bright colors against the monochrome background, wow! That really gives the scene so much extra energy. If there is anything to criticize about the photo it's really minor: 13 is just a touch softer than 113, and with a little more noise; by a tiny bit, but noticeably. But as you point out the degree of difficulty is really high, that makes sense. Outstanding.
@mollyc : Have you seen
Fantasia? This scene (and your cue about it) makes me think just a little bit of the piece to Beethoven's Pastoral, where Zeus brings a lightning storm to ruin the peaceful day. And like the merry revelers, this little town on the water is about to bear the brunt of it. I like that you suggested two different contrasts here: the light on the left and the dark overcast on the right, but also in reverse the storm clouds forming on the left versus the comparative peace on the right. The lighting is just right to emphasize the story, too: the storm clouds have a hard edge to them while the peaceful side is softer and fluffier. I loved this photo. I don't really wonder what's going on with that red streak in the bottom left, I supposed that's sunlight being diffused through the clouds in what would be a faked early sunset, but it does lend an angriness to the storm cloud side. Mount Doom erupting in the distance. Darned pedestrian walking on the pier, grrrrr.
@gaswerks : The more I look at this one the more I like it. My take on this instant in the struggle is that they aren't leaning into it yet...they've locked horns and are testing each other, and the surge of energy is about to come. As such, unlike some of the action shots that were submitted, this photo isn't filled with
kinetic energy but has tons of
potential energy. They may not be in motion, but this photo has a ton of tension and it demands my attention. That you did it in black and white kind of adds to the storytelling, like these two have sucked all the color out of the scene in their preparation for the explosion. I imagine an explosion of color erupting at the moment they release all that energy. I love the amount of detail, ESPECIALLY the way the light plays with their fur, particularly along the ridge of their necks. If there is one thing I would change, at least in the context of this contest, it would be to crop it differently so that the horns are dead center. That would enhance the visual representation of these two being equals, which increases the tension. But that would make the dimensions a less pleasing square.
@PhilBoogie : What do you mean you don't have a good photo for this contest? What's more opposite than Windows running on a Mac?
@oblomow : This is almost reminiscent of the moment in
@gaswerks' photo, but the aftermath instead of the lead-up. Again, a struggle for dominance between two members of the same species. You got good sharpness here without sacrificing much energy, though the hyena on the right (that's what they are, right?) seems to be the only one tugging at this point. He's also been in some scrapes, that bite out of his ear has its own story to tell. He's clearly on the losing end in this one, though, I would have loved to see this one earlier in the battle. On a technical note, I think some of the haze could be removed from this...but that's a matter of taste, and there might be disagreement on that. It would really bring out more of the really cool coloring of the dogs!
@Hughmac : I would really like to see what the keeper does on this ball! Nice moment of action, and though this will probably resolve into a one-on-one between the keeper or another defender and an attacker, it's not clear yet who they'll be. In situations like this it's really difficult to shoot with this kind of thing in mind, but the trees and the houses in the background make it really busy. I like the negative space at the bottom, though, it takes what up close is a melee and brings it closer to being a small, isolated area in a large space. It looks like the goalkeeper wandered in from a game for more mature players, lol.
@Jumpthesnark : Of all the submissions this week, this one is the one that best froze the action. This looks like a faster shutter speed than 1/1600! This is a good mix of color, even the most differentiated color (the yellow of the rear surfboard) blends in nicely. I don't think this would have been improved with more "out-there" colors: they look like they belong in the photo. I'm also actually amazed at the depth of field from the aperture you list. But you don't need bokeh: for one, this photo doesn't really call for it, but also the droplets at the top of the frame add some great depth. Though these are two individuals sharing the wave, I don't get the impression they are competing for it, or that they are opposed--by the very nature of the activity, they're moving in the same direction. I think this is a tremendous photograph, but it just misses the mark of the theme.
@OldMacs4Me : Now this is a competition I've been seeing on my very street this week, lol. If the snow in this pic is as wet and heavy as what we've had recently here, then I totally buy that this one was fought to a standstill. I tell you a detail I like on this photo, look at the snow on the visible tire. it gives me the impression like it's streaked, as if the bobcat has been spinning its tires in its attempt (and failure) to do its job! Sometimes it makes me laugh to see a man-vs-nature photograph where it's clear that man is supposed to win, and that it doesn't. Especially if the nature is doing nothing but just sitting there, minding its own business, lol.
Well this is incredibly difficult, I really went back and forth on our top two. Without further adieu, here is this week's podium:
Third place:
@mollyc
Second place:
@MrCheeto
First place:
@gaswerks
Congratulations you three! And to everyone who competed, my most earnest thanks and applause for your entries. I hope you all have a happy and safe holiday season!
