Weekly #437 - Fungi Competition

Fungi Competition Judging

I hadn't expected to be judging again so soon, but that's how it worked out and I'm always glad to have the opportunity. That's not to say I wasn't slightly worried for a while, as the entries came in very slowly at first. But in the end, PU members came through and as usual found all sorts of excellent photography to share.

There are two ways at looking at pictures of fungi, that is, the technically correct way that we might find in a book on fungi, or the purely aesthetic way where we produce a great looking image. Here everything is being looked at on its own merits, so both types of image are in. There's also the unpredictable lateral thinking approach of course....

Past The Sell By by tyronet2000 – A very abstract approach here and it reminded me of some sort of astronomical image, perhaps one of the moons of Jupiter. It's not of course but it does challenge the eye for a while. Excellent photography and a very valid opener for the competition.

Fungi by perspicador – Focus here is bang on and the fungus is presented well in its wider environment. The context is there. I do feel the overall image is too bright though, especially the background where the brightly lit green is over exposed and a bit obtrusive. I would try darkening it all down and I suspect it would dramatically improve it.

Toadstool by MHOL190246 – A good view of the top of this fungus that could do with a whisker more depth of field to make sure the entire cap is in focus. A technical view would need the stem shown and possibly the underside of the cap to some degree, but this approach has lots of pictorial possibilities. Again, I would darken this down considerably. I would also consider having the main subject a little off centre to improve composition. If the intention is to take the bold, central view, then I would suggest moving in closer to make that statement more forcibly.

Porcelain mushroom pair on a tree trunk by swarf – I like this very much. The composition is excellent and the backlight has given a translucency to the fungi that shows their structure off very well. This same background does unfortunately also have very busy bokeh, which I do find less than attractive, and this is the only slight drawback of a very fine shot.

Trio by ken2390 – Opting for a selective focus that gives priority to the leading fungus is a fair enough choice. The arrangement of the three does make a good shape and we are visually directed to view the main subject without too much competition from the others. We also have a good sense of environmental context and the low viewpoint is fantastic. A well thought out shot.

Radial fungi by alfpics – This is another great shot. I love the radial arrangement, and although it possibly becomes weaker on one side the composition is saved by the weight of the second trunk, bottom right, balancing things out. Brilliant.

All in a huddle by davidwozhere – Luscious colour and texture, excellent exposure and a very comfortable arrangement all combine to make an excellent shot. If possible I would have liked just one tiny bit more depth of field to include all the mushroom group in the zone of sharp focus. However, it's almost there, so let's not labour that point too much as it's a great image.

Frosty fungi by cardiffgareth – Good colour and exposure, only marred by so much of the image being unsharp. It was obviously a choice made but I think I would have preferred the image to be sharp all through, showing all the fungi in crisp detail. The fungi that are sharp are excellent.

Forest floor festivities by JAK – Some lateral thinking, so well done for that. Somebody is going to make a joke that you're obviously a fun guy but I seriously hope it's not me....I think the scan could definitely have been better as it's a bit unsharp and also rather grainy, so that doesn't give your image the best chance, but it's a fine idea and photography needs to be fun.

Oyster Mushrooms by geordie01 – A very fine view of this grouping showing off the detail very well indeed. It's all good but I would try to get more depth of field if possible and also an increase in sharpness. The two might go hand in hand. I really like the way the lighting has shown all that detail.

More Toadstools by GlynM – This is beautiful in terms of colour, sharpness and composition. Lovely. The grouping is very attractive, the colour realistic and the low viewpoint gives proper weight to the subject matter. Cap this off with sympathetic lighting and we have a splendid shot.

Mushroom cocktail by davidtrout – I did mention in the brief that the fridge could always be raided and David has done exactly that. He has also capped it off with a splendid dash of red, always an eye catcher. I do wonder about the background, which is quite distracting. Rather than a mass of highlights, plain black or a rustic still life setting might have been more powerful. I think it would be worth doing again with a different background. As it is though, a brilliant idea well photographed.

At home with the fungis by Caltren – The background is very well rendered here, and it makes an excellent backdrop to the fungi. The brightest parts of the subject do attract our attention though and it's a pity that so many of areas are not within the depth of field. A much smaller aperture would be appropriate. You have used f/4.5 and I would be inclined to go more for f/16. This would give maximum depth of field whilst avoiding the inevitable loss of sharpness that might result from going down to f/22.

Forest mushroom by noelcmn – This is a powerful arrangement, even more so if the out of focus left side of the trunk is cropped out. We can see the top, the underneath and the stem of the fungus quite clearly, which makes it an excellent illustration. I'm not so keen on the exaggerated colour and I'm not at all sure it was necessary to do this to make the subject stand out. I think it was a fine shot without that and it has just resulted in the image being rather unrealistic. The content is there though, so maybe a second look at the processing of the image could be made?

You wanted fungi! By drofmit – I asked for it and you delivered with a very nice interpretation and a very nice piece of photo journalism. You do very well with that little Optio!

I enjoyed all the images very much and I hope that the comments were helpful. The winners are a difficult choice and some fine pictures are competing for the podium places and the commendeds. Here are the results:

Winner is More Toadstools by GlynM – Well done on a very fine shot!

Second is Radial Fungi by alfpics – Unusual and very well executed.

Third is You Wanted Fungi by drofmit – Great Photo-journalism

Highly Commended awards go to:
Mushroom cocktail by davidtrout
All in a huddle by davidwozhere
Porcelain mushrooms pair on a tree trunk by swarf
Past the sell by by tyronet2000

Over to you GlynM!

Oh? First comment?

What a collection. Drofmit's makes the word eclectic a bit redundant. Well done the winners and thank you John for (very) prompt, concise and useful judging

Congratulations to GlynM for the winner...
to alfpics - good spot that!...
and to the HCs...
and thanks for the third podium place.
Given the season, I am surprised there weren't more entries, too!
But again food for the imagination here...
even...
if...
they...
aren't to be eaten!

Thanks for the prompt and considered judging, John.
You commented ""You do very well with that little Optio!"
Did, John, DID!!
That little Optio LS1100 WAS a very good pocket camera...
unfortunately, on my way upstairs...
to show "she who must be obeyed"...
a "look wot I just got!" picture...
I miss-stepped and threw the camera at the rubberwood floor on the landing...
seasoned rubberwood planking is very hard... the poor little Optio didn't bounce...
it landed on the "sticky-out" lens... which remained just that... "sticky-out"!
It has been replaced by the equally good... if not better... WG-2!!
I would recommend any outdoor photographer to get one of these as a "carry around"...
unfortunately, in my opinion, the capture quality has "gorn down'ill" in terms of quality...
in favour of ever increasing...
aquadepths,
temperaturextremes,
crushproofness and
trippingresistance....
and an evermore rugged look!
Are we all meant to be extreme sportspersons as well as photographers!??!
But they are still excellent, outdoor bits of kit...
I reckon I've now got two-thirds of recent pix with WG2_ in front of them...
compared with the K7 and now, the K3-ii...
the WG-2 is with me all the time...
the Optio LS1100 never was...
it always seemed a little delicate!

Many thanks John for another great competition and of course for the win .

Thanks also to Tim (drofmit) for the help in identifying my toadstools. We usually get some of these in the garden each year but I have never been able to work out what they are. Be assured though that we have certainly never had any urge to consume any of these!

Congratulations to my fellow podium members, alfpics and Tim, those highly commended and everyone else for such a well crafted collection.

I will have a think about a new competition subject and post something up shortly.

Glyn

Congrats all and we'll done Glyn and his fellow podium / HC's.

Bet if anyone walked past you photographing them, probably lying down on the ground with camera in hand, they muttered to themselves 'he looks a fun guy'
Get my coat...!!

Congratulations to the Winner and other placings. Thanks to John for the interesting subject, judging and the comprehensive comments. Thanks also for my HC.

Super dooper entries all round. Loved Glyn's winning image, the light was fantastic. Congratulations to all the other award winners and thanks for my HC. Still life isn't my usual scene and my attention to detail is certainly not up to Glyn's superb skill in this field.
Thanks to John for the competition, the time spent scrutinising the entries and for his expert analysis.
Finally I must say I hugely enjoyed Tim's entertaining account of the demise of his Optio.
All told my wet, cold and windy Monday morning has been considerably brightened.
David

Yeah, super duper images in this challenge, though I will protract my grudge against the Judge and everyone else, the reason being I LOVE my mushrooms, and all these images has left me hungry, despite that some of them are not edible. Still, I grudge . Fantastic challenge, thanks John, for as usual constructive comments and juding. Congratulations GlynM, amazing details you got there, wondeful colors. Congrats extended to alfpics, Dromfit (so sorry to hear about your Optio) and the HC's Davidtrout, Davidwozhere Swarf and Tyronet2000.

Thanks John for 2nd spot (a first time entry for the weekly comp for me) and congrats to Glyn - a beautiful sharp shot well composed., and to some other great images too