Odd Things in my Garden- October 11 competition

Stuck Down – Helen Whitford

Final Inspection – Les Ludgate

With a large number of impressive but odd things from members gardens to consider our judge for the evening, Keith Siedel, had a busy task but as expected he once again did it very well.

Keith is well known to club members as a photographer with a significant portfolio of internationally exhibited and awarded work. His work has been exhibited in 35 countries and published widely. He as been a member of the Edwardstown club since 1986 and is the longest active member. Keith is also the Judging Co-Ordinator for the SAPF. With that sort of background he had plenty of wisdom to pass along.

Empty Pupal Case – Kerry Malec

Fungi Family – Bev Langley

Caught – Judy Sara

Ladybird Elle – Judy Sara

Some of the key points Keith raised were:

Be conscious of the background and tone it down where necessary so that it does not distract.
Any sharp, strong colours should be cropped as they are too noticeable.
Quite a number of shots had a shallow depth of field, to their detriment. He definitely did not like soft edges.
Fill the frame with detail, make it a tight composition.
Some images just needed something added to tell a story and make it more powerful.
Be careful of over-sharpening.
Try and draw the viewer into the photograph.
If using macro, think about what needs to be sharp and what is ok to leave soft.
The time of day of course can have a major impact on the quality of the image.

There were once again a good number of entries in the Open category and they added to the wide variety on display.

Another great night with a larger number of entries from a broader membership mix and this was also reflected in the results.