Weekly Competition #78 : New Year's Eve Competition

Well done all of you. It was only after setting up the competition that I realised how difficult it was : you obviously thought the photos necessarily had to be taken on New Year’s Eve 2008 or previous years, perhaps my introductory words to the theme were misleading, so I am not surprised by the low number of entries (sorry!). Different interpretations or different ways of seeing this particular day, a matter of personal choice…, which made the judging task difficult.

johnriley : New Year’s Eve
An ordinary English street on an ordinary morning, except this is New Year’s Eve! I like the idea of New Year’s Eve shown as a day like others. The picture is well-composed, the fog gives the scene a very good atmosphere and the human presence, especially the man at the cash machine and the lady with the shopping bag, reinforces the idea of New Year’s Eve as an ordinary day. Very successful! 1st

Puds52 : New Years Eve Hike
This photo taken on New Year’s Eve shows this day is not only about celebration & entertainment. A nice walk can be good especially after too much eating and drinking at Christmas, it can also be part of one’s new year’s resolutions : more exercise in 2009!
This shot taken straight into the sun and above the clouds is well-composed, the sky is just great, the sun with its rays forming a nice star is not right in the middle, which would surely have been a mistake, however it is perhaps a little too far on the right. Is the foreground snow? If so it is too dark but I know it is difficult with so much contrast. Nevertheless, a fantastic landscape. 3rd

jacqui : celebration drink
Another well-composed shot, the different elements that compose this picture are well captured, I like the use of red on the white background, the decorations definitely suggests the Christmas and New Year celebrations, however a few things spoil the first general impression : I don’t recognize the drink, I don’t quite see what the little black circle is (a bubble?) and finally I realize it was not taken on New Year’s Eve. Actually it is not a problem but others made the effort.

Dwight-Morton : Fire
A picture of a fire and very nicely done. I also like the letterbox crop. However, I am not sure I really see the point in this picture, it looks like a fire in the fireplace, but I am afraid I am not absolutely certain. A lack of context or perhaps a little comment would have helped, sorry it doesn’t quite work for me.

Daniel Bridge : Firework Celebration
A photo about something traditional taking place on New Year’s Eve, a firework display, and it is technically well done : a very good composition, the long exposure is really good and has produced a really nice effect with the red and green colours at the top combined with the bright colours of the crowning pieces at the bottom. A very successful shot! 2nd

beebee: Tree had to go before the New Year
A bit of humour in this picture that nevertheless tells a very sad story, the focus of course is the tree that was once the glory of the house and the other elements (the spider web and the bin) are here to underline the sad ending, the table and the bench serve as a sort of vista. Very interesting ! However I think it takes a bit of time to read this picture, there is too much dark in the top right-hand corner and the spider web is out of focus. Apparently there was not much light when you took the photo, that’s why you set the camera on 1600 ISO, perhaps it was possible to try another combination to get more depth-of-field.

josh : Happy New Year What Credit Crunch
I understand the allusion you have made when I read the title and I like it. I also like the symmetry between “Casino” at the top and the base of the fountain at the bottom. I am not so keen on the overall orange cast and I would have preferred the coins to be a bit brighter even if I understand it was obviously not what you aimed at.

amoringello : Aftermath
This is what usually happens during a party, a nice shot of what is rightly entitled the ‘aftermath’ of the New Year’s Eve celebrations. I am not sure about the angle though. Moreover, wasn’t it possible to get rid of what I suppose is the floor at the top of the picture?

mikew : First Footing

With this photo I have learnt about the First Footing tradition (one year I celebrated New Year’s Eve in Haslingden in Lancashire but, as a Frenchman, I am afraid I didn’t know this tradition, don’t blame me!). Anyway, I like the composition and the contrast that natural light has permitted, especially on the piece of coal and the salt. Also I like the lighting on the bottle of gin. A lovely photo! 4th

Steve Chasey: Frosted trees on New Year's Eve
Another shot taken on a walk on the last day of the year?
The use of the DA 10-17 has created a nice effect. I also like the overall blue cast which suggests cold.

chelseablue : Sydney Harbour
Another shot of a firework display on New year’s Eve. This one was taken a few years ago in Sydney, one of the first major cities in the world to welcome in the New Year. It is a technically achieved shot with the crowning piece on the right (it would have been a mistake to put it at the centre). The only reproach is that I don’t think we can see it is Sydney, a famous attraction like the Harbour Bridge or the Opera-House would have helped us situate the event.

HowardJ : New Year's Eve(Garden) Party
Another different interpretation of New Year’s Eve, I like the humour in the title. The photo shows four birds and only one is clearly visible, I’m afraid. The camera was set at 800 ISO to allow you to take the photo handheld (at 300, however, you’d better not move!) and it was cropped to enhance the composition but I think the birds don’t stand out, it would have been better if you had taken only one of them closer… but then it would have been a different photo with a different meaning.

Now here are the winners and let me explain my choice :
I think it was bold to submit a photo that actually was taken on New Year’s Eve but apparently has nothing to do with the celebration itself. That’s why, although I also liked Daniel Bridge’s entry, I decided to choose John Riley’s entry as this week’s winner. This photo is nearly monochrome and reminds me of those old black & white postcards that are sometimes published in books on a particular town. We could well see it in 50 years with the caption “Atherton, New Year’s Eve, 2008”

1st johnriley : New Year’s Eve
2nd Daniel Bridge : Firework Celebration
3rd Puds52 : New Years Eve Hike
4th mikew : First Footing

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009

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Benoît

well done to the winner. great shot! sorry i didn't realise it was supposed to be actually taken on new years eve, i just thought of this photo that i already had as i thought it suited new years eve and the whole celebration thing.

Excellent judging Ben and well done to everyone who entered - especially JR for winning!

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Joining the Q

Congratulations John, a long overdue win I would say. And I like the winning shot, at first glance I thought that I see Southampton High Street... I like these foggy moods, though in my six years in Soton they were much less frequent than I expected when moving. The cliché of the foggy English landscape was very much alive.

Ben, well judged and a good theme, I think. I didn't find anything fitting in my archives and didn't take any worthwhile shots on the day (at least none screaming New Year's Eve to me).

Looking forward to next weeks competition...

Prieni

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How inappropriate to call this planet earth when it is quite clearly Ocean. - Arthur C. Clarke
Prieni's PPG page

Thanks for the coveted 2nd place Ben! And well done John for his shot, and Ben for the judging.

What's next then Mr. Riley?

Dan

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K-3, a macro lens and a DA*300mm...

Well judged - difficult set of images to compare and comment on. Worthy winner, image had a really cold effect on me.

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Everything is possible - just not today.
K7, K100d, 18-55mm kit, 50-200mm, Sigma 70-300mm, 50mm f1.4, 16-45mm f4.0, 50-135mm f2.8

Thanks for the 3rd place Ben. Congrats to John & Dan.