Sorry for the delay but had a bit of an unplanned emergency over the weekend. Feeling better now but this may be a little more concise in the writeup.
@lkalliance - Love marching bands...but may be a bit biased as a former trumpet player in the FSU Marching Chiefs. Great that not just the standard snapshot but brought a different perspective. Focus is on the tubas and their reflection while context is given with the soft DOF field band in the background.
@C0ncreteBl0nde - While not certain if event/parade or natural traffic, it is immaterial. Great catch as kids love doing that, and then the smile on their face when rewarded as the trucker obliges.
@mollyc - Night concerts are great as the darkness hides the background distractions very apparent in daylight shots. Perhaps could be improved with minimizing the distractions that the dark introduces. Perhaps simple cropping bringing it tighter. Do we really NEED to see the lights when their presence is understood?
@piatigorsky - The power of photography documenting events, and for the photographer, great memories from 2016. Thanks for the explanation as most people would see it as a crowd of jumbled heads and detached from the purpose and emotion captured photographically. Of course, a person who could actually read the posters is the intended audience for the photo where they would understand the social meaning and emotion.
(Intentionally skipping a couple for discussing last)
@Janichsan - Love the picture in picture as it is like a 2 for 1 special. I try to take advantage of that whenever possible showing the viewfinder of another photographer. Not only are you photographing the event, but photographing another party photographing the event. Nice framing getting both and even adding more detail in the process.
Now for the final two, but first a little background as the common denominator of the two is Storytelling. That is a broader subject that interest me. Back many millenniums when 90% of the world population was illiterate, history was kept alive with verbal folklore passed for generation, music, song, opera and plays, and of course those able to read - typically nobility and clergy - reading. As an example, for those that don't know Toastmasters, the 40th speech is a milestone speech as it is the last speaking requirement, which paired with non-speaking requirements, awards the highest designation - Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM). My 40th speech was from the Storytelling Manual presenting a historical event, and I took it way beyond the requirement. I chose to develop a speech on the War of 1812. (Not the US/British skirmish of 1812, but the real war Napolean/Russia 1812). TO educate the population of the day, it was originally told through music as the Czar commissioned Tchaikovsky to commemorate the events that lead up to and the war itself, in what we know as the Classical composition, The 1812 Overture. I blended to two as I told the story accompanied to the music and how each passage was reflecting a historical event that impacted the war.
With Storytelling in mind...the final two.
@_timo_redux_ - Halloween alone is a great event for passing on stories and folklore of the past. Very effective in the photo capturing the costumes of the participants as they re-enact and continue the folklore alive.
@oblomow - Very interesting. A little distracted by the tripod, but with the kids in uniform sitting around observing, appears to be some sort of martial arts class/event. The players are apparently presenting and passing on the ancient foundation that developed the martial arts philosophy. (Just guessing as I have no experience in the subject).
Now the most difficult part, selecting the top three among all the great entries...
3rd - lkalliance
2nd - Janichan
1st - _timo_redux_
