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Monthly #97 - Food Competition

Competition Details
Closing Date: 31/07/2020
Judge: GlynM

While it looks like lock-down might be drawing to a close I appreciate that for some it may still extend past the end of the month. So I have hopefully set an easy subject for these circumstances which has been inspired by some of the entries in the previous competition.

I want to see images of food. However I am open to a broad interpretation and food can obviously be anything from ingredients, including stuff that is still growing or packaged, through to preparation, presentation and consumption. So hopefully there are lots of opportunities for inspiration. As usual I will be looking for well-crafted images that capture the viewer’s attention.

The usual monthly competition rules apply. Entries must be shot during the month of the competition, July 2020, using a Pentax or the re-badged Samsung & Ricoh equivalent cameras.

The winner is expected to set, comment on and judge the next competition.

The competition closes at midnight BST on 31st July. Good luck and I look forward, with some anticipation, to seeing your entries.

Glyn
Competition Entries
GlynM
Posted 01/08/2020 - 11:02 Link
I would like to thank everyone that entered. Your efforts are very much appreciated.

Just a reminder that I am no expert at this. Everything here is just my personal opinion and the results reflect my personal tastes. I have tried to make useful comments for each entry and hope that I have not upset anyone as this was definitely not my intention. As always it is an excellent and well-crafted collection of pictures and it has been fun and a privilege to review your work.

My Pasta – garethparkes
A great colourful image to start off this competition. This is the sort of photography that I am really fond of. I think a lot of thought and preparation has gone into making this picture. The ingredients are nicely laid out and the background works very well. It may just be my monitor but it feels like the image could have just been a little brighter. However those beautiful colours certainly create some impact.

Ripening Fruit – PRYorkshire
My mother’s garden has an apple tree and each year I am drawn to shoot the apples but it is often hard to get a good result. Here the depiction of the apple is very good with sharp focus on and around it. The lighting works really well and I like that the foliage is allowing a little of the background sky to come through. I think perhaps I would have just cropped the image to remove the foreground out-of-focus leaves, particularly the one at the bottom. However the apple looks fantastic.

Freshly Baked – MHOL190246
This picture oozes with the inviting smell of fresh bread. The top of the loaf looks fantastic with good camera control providing excellent detail. Composition wise while the cooling rack does provide some nice depth I would have liked to have seen the loaf corner forward so that we got some site of one of the ends. However it remains a very inviting image.

Nectar! – Perspicador
Here we have a bumble bee on its rounds to collect nectar for feeding its tribe. I have always found it exceedingly difficult to photograph bees in flight but here you done reasonably well. While the buddleia’s are nice and sharp the bee looks a bit soft which I suspect is a depth of field issue. The flowers tell us that camera shake was particularly well controlled given the 300mm lens focal length.

Blackcurrants - Ripe for Picking – JAK
I really like this image. It is the sort of thing I love to try. It is a nice close-up image. I also like the diagonal aspect of the branch. With these sort of close-up images there is always going to be a challenge with the depth of field particularly with the spread of the fruit. I think I might have gone with a slightly narrower aperture but of course I was not there and other things, like wind causing movement, could have influenced the camera settings. It is also nice to see something shot with that particular premium lens which I am still struggling to avoid purchasing .

The winner takes it all – nigelk
This is certainly a fantastic action shot of a battle over a herring. I think we are seeing some excellent camera skills in action here. The composition and framing works well with the pair traveling into the shot towards the top left corner and I love the way the water splashes have been frozen. An excellent image, well done.

Food chain – mikeprotts
This is certainly a nice capture of a dragonfly. It is another image shot with a long, 300mm, focal length. The subject is in sharp focus and the lighting works well. There is something causing blurring of the fox glove stem in lower RH corner which is probably a foreground out-of-focus element and I find the background bokeh rather distracting. However it is a very good attempt at what I suspect is a difficult subject to capture.

Super Supper Sandwich – drofmit
I love this image. I think it has been well thought out and has a nice hint of story-telling. I really like that one side of the pair is the reverse of the other. I think the camera has been very well managed to provide a good depth-of-field with a sharp focus providing a fantastic level of detail.

Stir Fry – Noelcmn
I think this is a fantastic close-up image of a very inviting stir-fry. I love that it fills the whole frame and think it would make an excellent jigsaw puzzle. Good camera management providing a high level of detail and a good feeling of structure and depth. A grand image to close this competition.


Although there was a small, but reasonable, number of entries choosing the podium contenders was still quite difficult although for me the winner stood out. I was impressed by the range of interpretations and the quality of the submissions. So after some thought here are my winners:

1st – drofmit for “Super Supper Sandwich” – For such an inviting image with fantastic impact.

2nd – nigelk for “The winner takes it all” – For such an excellent action shot.

3rd – Noelcmn for “Stir Fry” – For a fantastic image that filled the frame.

Highly Commended to garethparkes because I was impressed with the thought and preparation that must have gone into making this image.

I think this completes my responsibilities here and hand over to Tim for the next round.

Glyn
Edited by GlynM: 01/08/2020 - 11:15
drofmit
Posted 01/08/2020 - 11:51 Link
Thank you Glynn, for the Pinnacle position.... and the competition subject... always close to my heart!
Congratulations to Nigel, Noel and everyone... I'll think I'd better my putting cap think on!
I seriously didn't expect to win against Nigel's gannets.... fabulous shot.
I always wonder how they avoid skewering each other on entering the water at 100kph....

Glynn, the composition was thought out.... but only after I spotted the symmetry where I'd cut my section of our baguette in half...
so, while my wife ate hers, I spent a while setting up and photographing.... things we do for a photo, eh!
The Razorback was very nice, too.... I like the "darks"!
Never be afraid to talk about your techniques...
"Give a thousand photographers...
the same camera, lens and scene...
and you'll always get a thousand different takes!!"
Anon.
Noelcmn
Posted 02/08/2020 - 18:50 Link
Congrats Drofmit, mmmm... looks so good! Worthy winner. And congrats extended to my fellow placed NigelK. Thanks for the 3rd Spot. I usually forget to submit for the monthly challenge, and this will give me added motivation. Thanks Glyn for the challenge and the C&C's. Always appreciated.
drofmit
Posted 02/08/2020 - 20:25 Link
Don't worry folks.... I am still thinking!
But I've realised that I haven't entered this weeks.... sorry, that will take priority!
Never be afraid to talk about your techniques...
"Give a thousand photographers...
the same camera, lens and scene...
and you'll always get a thousand different takes!!"
Anon.
Edited by drofmit: 02/08/2020 - 20:29

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