One of the challenges of entering competitions is when the results don't go the way you think they will - and August was one such month for me.
As usual, I entered three images (that being the requirement to keep in the running for the Photographers' Bar), and one of the images I absolutely adored. I worked so hard on the editing to make sure everything was as perfect as could be, and I was almost certain it would get a Bronze - and maybe even higher.....
Of my other two entries, one I was iffy about - I liked it but I was worried the highlights were a little bright - and the other I thought would probably be a solid classified. After almost five years of entering, you do get a feel for how images will score - you learn to 'play the game'.
So I was absolutely GUTTED when the image I loved was 'only' awarded Classified. Totally and utterly gutted and disillusioned with the whole thing. (I say 'only' in the context of my expectation here - Classified is an excellent result in its own right, being 70 points out of 100, and a professional standard).
But when I got feedback, I understood why it had scored the way it had, and it was a fair (if disappointing) result.
SO here are this month's entries:
First up, my sole Bronze Award of August was this beautiful shot of the gorgeous Mei, which was taken on a Mini Shoot Day hosted by Potter Paws Dog Training.
I personally LOVE profile shots - they're something a little different to the usual portrait, and I particularly like the shape of her neck in this shot.
It did take a little work in terms of balancing the light in this image before entering - with dogs you can't 100% control exactly where they position themselves on your backdrop, and in this case she was very close to the light camera left. That meant I had to do some dodge & burn work to tone down the highlights and lift the shadows.
I was actually thrilled to receive a Bronze Award for this image.
The remaining entries both scored Classified, which, as mentioned above, is a very respectable score in terms of the competition. The image of Remus, the fox red labrador, is the shot that I was gutted about not scoring higher, and this was basically due to the fact that he is looking upwards out of the frame, which leads the viewers eye in the same direction. Had he been looking straight ahead - who knows?
I should add there is absolutely nothing wrong with classified - competition is a very different beast and I know that both owners of these dogs absolutely adored their images - which is the most important thing!
