Weekly #383 - Stack(s)... Competition

Sorry for the delay this week...

Wow quite a varied selection of images this week too, however I was surprised not to see a single Chimney Stack!

1 Smokestack Light’ning (Perspicador)
In terms of the theme you’re on the right track. Unfortunately although I can see the smoke & steam I can’t see the main subject, the smoke stack! With the limited gap in the trees it would be a challenge to capture. I also think this image could do with a little tweaking of the levels in Post Processing as it’s looking a bit flat.
2 Egg merchant (michaelblue)
I like the limited colour pallet and the position of the subject in the frame. Unusual I don’t think I have ever seen anyone selling boiled eggs on a beach before… A nice well seen shot.
3 Stacks of Pots & Pans (Mudge)
A nice B&W shot, plenty of stacks to choose from in it, so it fits the brief nicely. I like the contrast in the in foreground although I found the sky somewhat plain, I would have been tempted to crop the top of the image to lose it and focus in on the stacks more.
4 Whitburn Sunrise (andymat)
Sea stacks, a cracking dawn shot that was well worth getting up for. Again it fits the brief perfectly. The only minor thing I think I would have done would be to clone out the brown branches sticking up into the sea.
5 A Balinese Theatre (Conexus)
A nice photo, I like the colour, the composition and the eye contact between the children and the person crouching down. Well seen. As for the brief I would say this was more rows or tiers of seating rather than stacks, I am not sure the image even suggests lots so for me it’s not quite on brief.
6 Stacking Toys (GlynM)
Ironically it was my nephews similar toys that inspired the subject of this week’s competition. It’s good to see something shot this for the competition, I like the colourful fun nature of the picture and it seems quite nicely lit. Personally I think I would have preferred to see less detail in the background, putting more distance between the subject and background would (assuming the basket is large enough) have thrown it out of focus.
7 Stack ‘em Up (johnriley)
I guess like the theatre one this interpretation of stacks, is lots physical its stacks. I like the colours in the image, I think if you got through that lot on Friday night John you would end up with a hangover…
8 Stacks of lolly (ken2390)
I like the idea of this, it covers both stacks as in lots and the physical stacks really well. The composition is good with a nice use of depth of field drawing the eye to the stacks of coins in the centre. The only question it raises is did the photographer blow the cash on a new camera body or more glass?
9 Stacked for scrap (davidtrout)
I like the colour in the rusty burnt out care in the foreground, it also leads the eye onto the main subject, the stacks of old cars in the background.
10 Pot-stacks (jfgandrews)
Really like the level of detail and colour in this image, I also think the composition works well too. A really nice image and very well seen.
11 Steel Railway Sleepers (nonur)
Quite an abstract image and unusual to see steel sleepers. I think the photographer has captured the pitting in the metal well, but I found the shadow area slightly distracting and feel it’s compromising the colours on the right.
12 The Pentax Era (Stubyles)
A very creative idea and well executed. Unfortunately I found this image to say rows rather than stacks, in a similar way to the theatre one.
13) Deep In Thought (gabby)
Black & white is always great choice for a portrait. It seems the autofocus has locked on the arm of the person half in shot, so the subject is a little soft. I am not sure how this image fits the brief, a notice board and someone deep in thought… Perhaps I am missing something obvious.
14 Stacked Rocks (Noelcmn)
A landscape of quite a dramatic stack of rocks. I assume this is due to erosion, given how far south this is. I personally would have liked more detain in the sky, I feel the highlights are just getting a little overcooked.
15 Bidons & Bois (drofmit)
I really liked this image, particularly the absence of colour apart from the containers bottom left. Very creative and a strong contender to win. I did wonder if the image would have “read” better from left to right if it had been flipped horizontally, I tested it in potty shop and can confirm you have it spot on…
16 Building Bricks (Paulb531)
Another colourful children’s toy inspired image, a higher stack than the earlier one! The stack is almost too tight with the left hand side of the frame, so I felt the earlier one was a better composition.

So in first place: Stacks of Pots & Pans (Mudge)
Second to: Bidons & Bois (drofmit)
Third to: Whitburn Sunrise (andymat)

Thanx for the podium 2nd and congrats to jfgandrews - a shot I could live with on the wall...
as with the Whitburn shot...
also a lot to stimulate the imagination this week...
but who did win? [See the placings at the end... ]

I also flipped my shot in Pottyshop...
and like you discovered it didn't work...
but I'm totally unsure why...
unless it is just a human perception thing??

And in shot thirteen.. Deepi in thought...
I think the "stack" is as in "absolutely stacked"...
or having consumed all that JR had lined up on the bar!!

Many thanks Stephen for for an interesting and excellently commented competition.

Congratulations to jfgandrews for the well deserved win, the runners up and everyone else for another great set of images.

As an aside, and definitely naming no names, although certainly well within the rules I always feel a little disappointed when I see an entry that has been in a previous one of these competitions. It was though interesting to compare what Stephen wrote here with what I wrote for the same image in another competition many moons ago. I was pleased to find that we largely agreed.

Glyn

That wasn't mine was it?
I thought it looked a bit familiar when I found it...
but the file size was far too big for uploading here [3.9K]...
and I presumed that I'd entered it elsewhere
so I tidied it up, played with left vs. right and re-cropped and resized...
I keep no records of what I enter for competitions on this site and others, sorry.
I keep all my files in their root section...
under their original subject file name...
like this "Year, Month, Topic, Sub-topic, Sub-sub-topic, etc!!
So a trawl by me may well end up with a repeat...
if, for some reason, I saved the small [1K] file elsewhere...
it does happen!!
Apologies to all, if 'twas!

Now that you have mentioned it - from Weekly competition 226 (Link):

So you see Stephen & I both really liked it .


Glyn

Sorry for the confusion, my post should have read pot stacks....!

Think I was stacked out last night!

Cripes... that was three years ago!!
No wonder I couldn't remember...
too much water under the bridge...
or too much beer outa the fridge!!?

Need to improve my filing and/or tagging....

Thank you Stephen for the competition and your judging and congratulations to John on his win and to the other podium placings.
David

PPG: PPG: http://www.pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/davidtrout