Results**CTF Mini-Challenge #215 - Reflections**

[Richard J M]

Hi All,

It has been my pleasure to host this mini challenge. I am honored to have had so many wonderful entries by so many excellent photographers. This has not been an easy task for me as the entries were varied and each one had aspects which I enjoyed. On the next reply will be the Honorable Mentions and then the Winners on the next reply after that. Thank you all for your participation and comments.

Richard

 

[Richard J M]

Hi All,

Here are the Honorable Mentions in the Reflections Mini Challenge. There were so many wonderful entries, the choices were hard and I hope you forgive me for having so many HM’s. I found wonderful aspects of everyone’s photos.

HM’s for best in the bird’s category. There were so many wonderful bird reflections and I picked three of them that I thought were quite well done.

1. 1Resting Blue Wing Teals by Dzyg. This was a late entry and I’m glad it was entered. These cute little are perfectly framed on the canvas of the still blue sky reflecting off the water. They are lit and focused so well that I can see the catch light in the eyes of the reflection.

1. 2 Geese by Pieter. I love the composition and lighting of this shot. The morning misty light makes a wonderful setting, with the geese necks mimicking the trees in the background with all the perfect reflections in the canal. Those guys are quite comical and I enjoyed this shot.

1. 3 California Brown Pelican by Sue. Wonderful timing in getting this shot the moment this guy was setting down in the blue water with the long wings creating a symmetrical V pattern in the rippling water.

HM’s for best in the dreamy reflection category. These reflections create a dreamlike atmosphere that are like paintings.

1. 1 Autumn Reflection in Colorado Mountain Lake by Tricia. Beautiful yellows, greens and golds alive with late afternoon light reflected in the ripples of the water create this very aesthetic capture. The two individual concentric ripples add interest to this wonderful image.

1. 2 Fountain City Lake by Photodug. Two ducks set against the brilliant rich colors of red, gold and yellow in the ripples of the water. It looks like a beautiful oil painting to me.

1. 3 Shoreline by Jim. This shot is all about colors, lighting and feelings. The different shades of green, yellow, and gold with the gently flowing water and the shoreline and bridge moving through the image make this a peaceful composition. I love the way the soft warm afternoon light filters through the trees and reflects off the water. The soft focus of this shot make it like looking at a dream.

HM’s for making the bad look good.

1. 1 'Reflections of Dereliction' by Linda. The reflection of this derelict building turns it into a piece of art with blues, greens and shades of grey giving an etheric look to the run down building.

1. 2 A motor oil slick reflects a cityscape tree by Zindanfel. The colors of the oil slick create a modernistic colorful canvas for the reflections of the overhead trees. Very well observed.

HM’s for best reflections on glass buildings.

1. 1 Sky on a glass wall by Nick. This reflection is so perfect it looks like someone painted lines on the sky and took a picture of it. Just incredible.

1. 2 Reflected Jigsaw (Newcastle, England) by Carrihighlander. A beautiful collage of reflections created by the different angles of the glass of the building. Very aesthetically pleasing with the arch creating a central focal point of interest that draws my eye. The glass above is slightly curved and ever so slightly reflects the blue of the sky while remaining transparent. Very nice.

HM’s for best indoors reflections.

1. 1 Reflecting lights on the ole Canon at Gettsyburg by Sue Anne. I loved the patterns of refracted light reflecting off the canon and the floor of the display. It brings the old canon alive with glowing light.

1. 2 Reflections in stainless steel by Keelie. This shot shows a great deal of creativity and wonderful execution. The composition and lighting are excellent. It is a wonderful still life of indoor reflections.

HM’s for Unique Water Reflections.

1. 1 Sunlight on Sydney Harbour by SCAdianScout. I like the way the glimmering midday sunlight reflections on the water create a canvas for the silhouettes of the fishermen and boat dock. A beautiful capture.

1. 2 A tadpole's view of freedom by Loose_Canon. This unique photo was shot from below the water looking up to give the tapoles view of his reflection. A wonderful composition with muted pastel colors creating a canvas for the lone tadpole and his reflection. Wonderful.

More HM's to follow..... Richard

 

[Richard J M]

Here are the rest of the HM's .....

HM’s for Most Unusual Reflections.

1. 1 Ghostly Refraction by Al Ruscelli. I love the beautiful colors and pattern of the light created by the refracted light reflected off a dark surface. It looks like something from a Sci-Fi movie. I don’t know how he did it and I won’t ask…. It may be one of those “I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you” things. A mesmerizing photo.

1. 2 Lighting in a Bottle by Steve. Intense blue colors reflecting off a glass like surface with a lightning bolt ripping through the blue of the bottle and the reflection. I’ve never seen anything like and have no idea how he did it. Fascinating!

HM for most perfect reflection

Untitled by Inframan. This reflection is so perfect that I can turn if upside down and it almost looks the same. The composition is very nicely done with the horizontal lines of the fence set against the vertical siding lines of both the small building the metal building as a backdrop. Incredible symmetry.



HM for best sunset colors reflection.

Mountain Sunset Reflection by Colleen. This is a beautiful shot with the mountains and orange colors of the sunset reflected off the glass windows. With the blue sky and pink clouds in the background and the railing taking your eye to the window it is an excellent composition. Beautiful!



HM for best “I’m melting” Reflection.

The San Pasqual by MiataRed. The concrete ship looks as though it is melting into the water. I love the white ship with reds and brown rust colors set against the canvas of light blue of the sky and deep blue of the water.



HM’s for Using a vehicle as a canvas for a reflection.

1. 1 Old Train #1 by Jada. The shiny old train make for a wonderful canvas for the beautiful colors of yellow, gold and blue. I really like the composition with the line of the train and pathway leading your eye to the into the distance and the reflecting train car. The gray cloudy sky makes for a more dramatic backdrop for the brightly reflected train.

1. 2 Sunset Reflection on Van by Colleen. Again I really like this composition with the beautiful colors of the reflected sunset in the van and the lines of the telephone poles and wires bringing your eyes into the distant sunset. The details of the trees also reflected on the van add even more interest to me.

HM for best self reflection.

My Hobby by Jyrki. An incredible collage of beautiful photos by Jyrki reflecting his love of and skill in photography. The reflected swan photo is wonderful and also perfect for this challenge.



And finally a Special Honorable Mention for “Just Looking” by Ami. I believe this photo is quite a work of art. The lone figure staring down into the gray cloudy reflected sky works for me on two levels. One is the composition of the reflections and the second is the inner reflection aspect of the figure, looking down as though looking into the underworld. A very moody and dark image that I could see hanging in a gallery. But that is just me, others may see something quite different.



I hope I haven’t gone overboard here or bored all of you with my myriad of HM’s, but I actually had to hold myself back from adding more. I found wonderful aspects with all the photos.

Richard

 

[Richard J M]

Hi Again All,

OK, now for the first, second and third place winners. Quite frankly, any of the following 5 photos could have been first place in my mind. I love them all. And on another day I may have picked a different one for first, but since I had to choose….. here we go.

Third Place – Tie

Illinois Vietnam Memorial by Hank. A very powerful image that works of two levels. First there is the perfect reflection of the flag on the stone surface that is placed in such a way as to look as though it is etched into the stone. Second, the flag and the names of those who died on the battlefield leads to inner reflection about life, death, and meaning….. at least for me. I personally thought about those in my home town who went off to war and never came back.



Boat Harbor Reflection by Inframan. A beautiful HDR image with deep colors and perfect reflections. I love the composition with the line of boat masts leading one’s eye off into the distance. The deep blue canvas of the sky and water makes the colors of all the boats pop off the page with intensity. Unfortunately, the location of this image seems to have changed so it doesn't show on preview. I am sure you all remember it however, as it was such an outstanding image.



Second Place – Tie

Bird Taking Off by Bob Blount. This is one incredible photo. So many perfect aspects, the lighting on the wing, the bird walking across water on take off, the bird’s reflection on the deep blue canvas of the water , and the perfect focus on the glowing feathers of the wing all make for a beautiful capture. This is National Geographic type stuff. Wonderful!



‘Down town Philadelphia has a lot of glass’ by Loose_Canon. I had a really hard time not giving this first place. I think this is perfectly composed shot with the skyscrapers literally looking like they are scraping the sky. The reflections of the buildings on each other set against the blue and white sky that lead up to the building on the right melting into the sky is incredible…. I seem to be using that word a lot. The sky reflections on the right building give it an etheric and almost spiritual quality, the feeling you might get from an old gothic cathedral.



First Place

‘Myself on a door handle’ by Nick (Nipan_51). I find this photo simple and yet quite unbelievable. Here is this little old scratched up brass colored door knob and in it is the entire body of the photographer and some of the surrounding room. It is like a tiny fish eye lens. The lighting is just perfect with the sunlight behind the image of the person creating the contrast needed for him to stand out. The detail of this tiny person in the door knob is quite perfect. You can see his fingers and eyes and know that he is staring right at you. The canvas for the shot is the beautifully lit wood door and brass hardware make this an excellent composition. Technically a very difficult reflection shot that was executed to perfection. A wonderful example of the theme of Reflection.



So I am passing the Mini Challenge baton off to you Nick. I am sure you will indulge us with a wonderful next challenge.

Thank you to all who participated; it has been my pleasure to have been honored with hosting this challenge.

Richard

 

[Hank3152]

.......thanks for the 3rd place and outstanding commentaries on all of the selected Hms and winners.

You've done a great job on the critiques... pointing out many details that may have otherwise been taken for granted and/or overlooked......well done, Richard.
--
Regards,
Hank

 

[Nipan_51]

Richard,

I am enormously honored by your giving me the first prize, as well as an HM.

I have been shooting photos for many years, just for keeping the memory of visiting places or family events. Lately, I decided to deal more with digital photography. I found plenty of spare time, after my professional obligations, (not voluntarily), shrunk a lot. I was also encouraged by the expertise that comes overflowing through this excellent forum, as well as other gallery hosting websites.

I want to thank you for being such a wonderful host for this challenge and to congratulate all the HM's and winners.
The level of entries was really a high one, and of a great diversity.

Finishing I have to say that, though I would be happy to, for some personal reasons that came up lately, I will not be able to host next challenge...

I pass this honor and task to the next winners, and I'll be glad to participate into their selected subject.
I am sorry if my decision is disrupting the challenges continuity,

Nick

 

[A. Rand]

Thanks Richard for choosing my photo -" just looking" -for a Special Honorable Mention & for your kind words regarding your reason for doing so.
Best regards & lots of success,
Ami
--
http://www.pbase.com/jurisam/root

 

[LindyB]

Congratulations to all the winners, especially to Nick for a great winning shot! It's a shame you're unable to host the next challenge - maybe next time

Richard, thank you for my HM and for being such an excellent host. As Hank said, you did a wonderful job with your comments, enabling me to see details I hadn't noticed before in many of the entries. Your hard work is much appreciated!

So, is the next host to be Bob or Loose_Canon?

Linda

 

[Ken G.]

There were so many great submissions to choose from and Richard did a great job with his selections and comments. Congrats to Nick on your win, and to all the other winners and HM's. I'm looking forward to Loose Canon's choice for the next challenge.

--

Nikkormat FT2 , Nikon FM , CP 9 5 0, CP 8 8 0 0, D 5 0, D 3 0 0, 18 - 70, 70 - 300 VR, 18 - 200 VR, 50 1.8, 300 AF-S f/4, 17-55, Tamron 9 0 Macro, Tokina 12 - 24 f/4, SB800, Kenko 1.4x TC, Nikon 6 T, PSP X, Canon G-Ten
WSSA member #77

Ken G.
http://www.pbase.com/kgilbertsen/

 

[sueanne]

for a wonderful winning and SP photo.

Thank you Richard for being a great host, commenting and encouraging
and also for naming one of mine.

We have a great group of photographers and even the new ones are enlighting.

--
----------------------------
regards,
sue anne
http://www.pbase.com/sueymarky

 

[LindyB]

I'm looking forward to
Loose Canon's choice for the next challenge.

Ken, just thought I should point out that second place was a tie between Loose_Canon and Bob Blount.

Linda

 

[Jada Eastwood]

to all the winners.

Richard, thank you so much for mentioning me in the HM's. That was an honor.
--
Jada

 

[Jada Eastwood]

Has there ever been.....co-hosting for this type situation?

It's unfortunate that Nick has a conflict in hosting as I feel he would have been an excellent host.

Whatever happens as to the new host(s), I just know the next MC will be great!
--
Jada

 

[Richard J M]

Ok, since the Nick can not host the next challenge this would mean either Bob or Loose_Canon will be the host. I'll break the tie suggest that Bob be the next host. I only say this because Loose_Canon was the host a short time ago. Both had superb shots and I am actually fine with either being the host, but in looking at the list of past winners, I don't see Bob leading a challenge. So if he is OK with it and if others are Ok with it, then I nominate Bob to lead the next challenge for his excellent shot of the bird walking on water..

Is this OK with you Bob? Others?

Richard

 

[Jada Eastwood]

Great solution and I can't see Loose minding at all due to recent hosting.

--
Jada

 

[Al Ruscelli]

Richard, a very well done challenge. Great job as host and a wonderful set of entries in the group effort. Nick, Loose_Canon, Bob Blount, Inframan, Hank...excellent photos! ;-)

I could see as things progressed that this challenge was going to be difficult to judge...but a great set of finalists emerged...so again, well done, Richard.

And thanks, Richard, for putting one of mine out there as an HM. I liked the "mystery" of that photo, too. Had I not experimented (on a whim) with lights and refraction/reflection and gotten that result, I'd have no idea what I was seeing in just viewing the photo -- and a shot of something drifting through outer space would come to mind. (By the way...the shot was done against a white wall, unlikely as it might look.)

 

[dzyg]

--

Thanks for letting me participate and thanks for choosing my ducks for an HM. Congrats to all the winners and HM's, some great photos out there! Looking at the HM's (Fall reflections) made me realize something. I have a photo hanging on my family room wall that would have been great for this challenge also, can't believe I didn't think of it.

D

 

[Ken G.]

You are right. But then there's Richard's comment on Loose_Canon's entry - "I had a really hard time not giving this first place." I guess it'll be Richard's call in the end. Maybe a coin toss?

--

Nikkormat FT2 , Nikon FM , CP 9 5 0, CP 8 8 0 0, D 5 0, D 3 0 0, 18 - 70, 70 - 300 VR, 18 - 200 VR, 50 1.8, 300 AF-S f/4, 17-55, Tamron 9 0 Macro, Tokina 12 - 24 f/4, SB800, Kenko 1.4x TC, Nikon 6 T, PSP X, Canon G-Ten
WSSA member #77

Ken G.
http://www.pbase.com/kgilbertsen/

 

[LindyB]

That's a good idea Richard. As he hosted a couple of months ago, I'm sure Loose_Canon won't mind.

Linda

 

[LindyB]

You are right. But then there's Richard's comment on Loose_Canon's
entry - "I had a really hard time not giving this first place." I
guess it'll be Richard's call in the end. Maybe a coin toss?

Hi Ken, Richard made this suggestion:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1010&message=31407278

Linda