Club Meeting, 1st Open Pdi Competition - Tuesday 18th October 2022.
On Tuesday 18th October 2022 the Club welcomed Chris Graham from Ashington as the judge of our First Open
Pdi Competition of the 22/23 season. The good standard of 50 entries had made the choosing of winning images
challenging, yet enjoyable.
We were treated to a cornucopia of subjects starting with the simplicity of a huge bubble and including melting
ice on leaves, a moorland abstract and a tank ride. Chris remarked that landscape images shown would have
made good subjects for jigsaw puzzles, be it woodland walks or such watery destinations as rivers, lakes, fairy
pools or the shore. Accompanying boats, bridges, viaducts and reflections, and surrounding hills complemented
the views. Sometimes buildings were the main feature, such as Amble apartments, Warkworth castle, Calton
Hill, Scottish Parliament, even a wall with a face.
Living subjects included a moody child portrait, a group of hounds, a glistening spider, shoreline birds, geese
on a day out, bedtime for ducks and a falcon, not forgetting the landing puffins! A high key rose, blue flowers,
fly trap flowers, aquilegia, fern and berries represented the flora.
Chris drew our attention to positive aspects of the images entered such as effective colour and shutter speed,
good exposure and depth of field, plus the use of leading lines. He praised suitable foregrounds & backgrounds
where appropriate. Because of the overall standard of entries small errors were not ignored and black spots or
artefacts and especially lack of sharpness kept some images in Chris’s ‘near miss’ category.
Simple changes were suggested, such as, in the case of a blood moon, changing a title to suit the subject more
exactly, or changing from colour to mono to bring out architectural detail or the sun’s rays. His opinion was that,
for some, cropping out some sky or trees, taking a step to the right or removing a stray fence, a flagpole or an
overly prominent staith might be improve composition.
Highly Commended choices were St Michael’s, Brodsworth, by Karin Jackson, which would work in colour or
mono; Kinderdijk by Sue Dawson, with processing reminiscent of a Dutch Master; Impressions of Coble Quay,
Amble, by Davy Bolam, very much a modern art piece; Catching the Wind by Carl Harper, a pin-sharp bird with
a look of concentration.
In fifth place, Chris chose Elements of Art by Davy Bolam, with spectacular colours in the lines of light that
made a geometric abstract. In fourth place was Mallaig Lifeboat by Glyn Trueman, praised for its vibrant colour
standing out against the background. New Delhi Apartments by Paul Appleby came third, with vibrant colours
and window interest that included a bicycle high up on a wall. Second place was given to Rogue Wave, again
by Davy Bolam, having an interesting shape as well as being sharp and having good depth of field. In First
place was In the Moment by Brian Morris. A clear favourite with the judge for its simple rendition of a person
in the shadows looking out to a scene which made good use of neutral space.
1st. In the Moment. 2nd. Rogue Wave. 3rd. New Delhi Apartments.
Before refreshments were served Co-chair Sue Dawson thanked Chris for his work in judging the selection and
for the many tips and suggestions he had offered.
Sue Dawson.
Pdi Competition of the 22/23 season. The good standard of 50 entries had made the choosing of winning images
challenging, yet enjoyable.
We were treated to a cornucopia of subjects starting with the simplicity of a huge bubble and including melting
ice on leaves, a moorland abstract and a tank ride. Chris remarked that landscape images shown would have
made good subjects for jigsaw puzzles, be it woodland walks or such watery destinations as rivers, lakes, fairy
pools or the shore. Accompanying boats, bridges, viaducts and reflections, and surrounding hills complemented
the views. Sometimes buildings were the main feature, such as Amble apartments, Warkworth castle, Calton
Hill, Scottish Parliament, even a wall with a face.
Living subjects included a moody child portrait, a group of hounds, a glistening spider, shoreline birds, geese
on a day out, bedtime for ducks and a falcon, not forgetting the landing puffins! A high key rose, blue flowers,
fly trap flowers, aquilegia, fern and berries represented the flora.
Chris drew our attention to positive aspects of the images entered such as effective colour and shutter speed,
good exposure and depth of field, plus the use of leading lines. He praised suitable foregrounds & backgrounds
where appropriate. Because of the overall standard of entries small errors were not ignored and black spots or
artefacts and especially lack of sharpness kept some images in Chris’s ‘near miss’ category.
Simple changes were suggested, such as, in the case of a blood moon, changing a title to suit the subject more
exactly, or changing from colour to mono to bring out architectural detail or the sun’s rays. His opinion was that,
for some, cropping out some sky or trees, taking a step to the right or removing a stray fence, a flagpole or an
overly prominent staith might be improve composition.
Highly Commended choices were St Michael’s, Brodsworth, by Karin Jackson, which would work in colour or
mono; Kinderdijk by Sue Dawson, with processing reminiscent of a Dutch Master; Impressions of Coble Quay,
Amble, by Davy Bolam, very much a modern art piece; Catching the Wind by Carl Harper, a pin-sharp bird with
a look of concentration.
In fifth place, Chris chose Elements of Art by Davy Bolam, with spectacular colours in the lines of light that
made a geometric abstract. In fourth place was Mallaig Lifeboat by Glyn Trueman, praised for its vibrant colour
standing out against the background. New Delhi Apartments by Paul Appleby came third, with vibrant colours
and window interest that included a bicycle high up on a wall. Second place was given to Rogue Wave, again
by Davy Bolam, having an interesting shape as well as being sharp and having good depth of field. In First
place was In the Moment by Brian Morris. A clear favourite with the judge for its simple rendition of a person
in the shadows looking out to a scene which made good use of neutral space.
1st. In the Moment. 2nd. Rogue Wave. 3rd. New Delhi Apartments.
Before refreshments were served Co-chair Sue Dawson thanked Chris for his work in judging the selection and
for the many tips and suggestions he had offered.
Sue Dawson.