A good variety of entries this week. Thanks to everyone who entered.
Before we start, I shall apologise for the subject matter of this contest. It was clear in my mind what I was looking for, but Im not sure I communicated it effectively.
As such, dont feel too miffed if I say you didnt quite hit the brief - I accept part responsibility for that.
Goftrey - The best way to appreciate this photo is to click through and see it full size on flickr. The detail in the rock formation is lovely. The dog does give it a sense of scale, and is therefore an essential part of the picture. It would have been nice to see the dog closer to the camera, although thats Catch 22 as the sense of scale would be thrown out somewhat. Ultimately the game of spot the dog works as the scale is suddenly revealed.
Jacksonc - A good idea, but the general feel of the photo isnt really cluttered. What detail there is is good, but a larger DOF would have given a more in-focus detail, and consequently a more overall busy picture.
Apple fanboy - Photography-wise this ticks all the right boxes - rule of thirds, butterfly isolated by the DOF, and nicely position on the sunniest of the flowers. Not as cluttered a photo as I was hoping for, but that is my only criticism.
kenoh - I have no idea what colour the trailer or the fence are, but it would have been nice to see this picture in colour. The trailer and the fence merge somewhat, so perhaps colour would help separate the two. Large DOF helps clutter the picture, but still more sky and empty field than I would have liked.
needfx - Im sure weve seen this before, or maybe one from the same set. Its a fantastic photograph, great subject, great lighting, and perhaps most importantly, crammed full of stuff. I dont know if you did some PP on the darker one, but its an excellent touch. For some reason reminds me of the scene in I, Robot, where the rebellious robot is hiding amongst hundreds of others.
pmxperience - I was fully expecting that the most cluttered photos would all have a huge DOF, but youve knocked that theory out of the park with this one. A busy market street - definitely choc full o stuff. Did you know the guy in the cap? If not, thats a great find. He looks like hes overseeing the crowds of an Orwellian society to make sure no-one steps out of line or shows signs of individuality.
Chappers - The bokehd flowers in the foreground give a pleasing splash of colour here, and the in-focus buds are tack-sharp against the shadowed background. Im not sure i get the focal point here - theres nothing grabbing my attention. Its a great example of DOF, but again it doesnt have quite the cluttered feel I was looking for.
someoldguy - Initially this reminded me of the jar of foreign coins I have from my travels, until I realised theyre dollars and cents, and youre in the USA, in which case its simply known as money. Great photo, youve got the silver and copper nicely mixed - fits the brief perfectly with no blank space, and is one of 2 coffee shop wall pictures in this contest.
Hughmac - If this doesnt make you smile then either youre cold-blooded, or maybe a loved one was eaten by a bear. Fits the brief perfectly, with very little bare space. A nice touch with the sunglasses as the light gets brighter at the bottom.
deep diver - Im going to confess my ignorance here. I had to Google Labradorite, as my first thoughts were that this was a photograph of something your labrador had broken. Now that Im slightly wiser, it does have a nice pattern to it. The picture doesnt look particularly tack-sharp, although its difficult to tell as the natural patterns in the stone may be causing a soft focus effect. Id be interested to see this with different lighting set-ups to see the effect it has on the pattern.
themumu - As you correctly point out, the details are best explored on a larger version. Photography-wise its all good - the undulating landscape, the foreground interest, all-in-all a really nice photograph. As for matching the brief, there is a lot to see in this picture, but theres a whole heap of blank space there with that sky.
iMac wannabe - As you probably know, were all a bit squeamish about firearms on this side of the pond, but this is a cracking photo. Fits the brief perfectly, with the reflections on the bullet casings adding to the clutter, Well lit, well composed, and a spot on DOF just fading out top and bottom - lovely!
AlexH - Lots to see here and a very nice subject. Is that some sort of tuning wrench right and centre? I dont know if youve done some PP on this or whether the light was reflecting off a blue surface at the bottom, but its given the picture a lovely retro tint which works well on the hammers. Im still undecided about the top of the photo - at first glance I thought I was looking at two photographs, as everything above the line and everything below the line is so different. This could be remedied by having the 2 objects at the top overhanging the edge slightly to tie the picture together.
The Bad Guy - Choc full o Contrast, Black and most definitely Awesome for sure. An extremely tenuous interpretation of the brief however which is the only thing keeping you out of a winning slot. Other than that, a stunning photograph which would no doubt have won last weeks contest and saved me having to judge this one.
Elbert C - I was hoping to click through to a larger version of this to get a good look at the bird, but unfortunately it was not to be. The bird completely draws the eye thanks to the well-judged DOF and I like the half-asleep look on his face. A great bird shot - my only criticism being that by necessity, the single focal point and out-of-focus background loses the cluttered feel I was looking for
v3rion - Youve definitely hit the brief here, and with a lovely palette of colours. Would suit the wall of a coastal cafe.
jkramerbob - Great photo - youve caught this at a great time of day with the low sunlight. It has a lovely depth to it that leads the eye from the very front of the picture, right to the furthest point in the top right. Unusual to see all the headstones laying flat instead of vertical, but one of the things I love about this forum is the chance to see other parts of the world and the different ways things are done. Another one thats matched the brief.
rx7dude - Well, I asked for choc full, and thats what I got here. At first glance I see a pleasing mass of bright colours, then Im drawn in to inspect the detail and start to discover all kinds of interesting items. This is one of those pictures you can look at time and time again and keep finding new things. Would make quite a fun poster for a childs bedroom.
TheBeastman13 - This reminds me of our fortnightly sweep of the house for recycling day. A good, busy, cluttered picture which has been well posed to look messy, whilst drawing attention to the the man on the Chesterfield magazine. His bewildered expression fits his position atop this heap of old papers, as if hes saying get me out of here.
As usual, tough to narrow it down to three, so Im going to tear up the rule book and have three second places and a first
2nd places - pmxperience, needfx, Hughmac
1st place - imac wannabe
I cant believe I chose bullets over cuddly bears - oh the humanity!
London Eye by Parkin Pig, on Flickr
