Ageing and the elderly (people)

This image crept up through my top choices each time I reviewed during the judging, until it ended clearly in my top three. I especially love how you have captured her bright eyes, unruly hair and her impish grin, which all give character to this delightful looking elderly lady in her home, as she stands clutching her drink with gnarled arthritic hands. In my work-life, I came across many "Kathleens" and your image brings back memories of all those wonderful, spirited characters, who seem to flourish against the odds. Maybe will not be an obvious crowd choice, but an image I think much deserves its place in my top three. Well done!

This image demonstrates that beauty does not disappear with age. You have sensitively captured this portrait which shows a lady full of beauty, strength, wisedom, and yet maybe some gentle sorrow. Lighting is great - plenty of detail but no unflattering hard shadows. Everything is in sharp focus, and a successful black & white conversion too. Also like the composition, which draws us into the image to her gaze, giving an immediate connection to her. Beautiful image, well done.

This is one of my favorite environmental portrait images on Photocrowd - I just love it. You have captured this delightful lady at the perfect moment during food preparation in the steamy kitchen - looking to be enjoying the hustle and bustle as she serves up the food. You have caught her face in a beautiful expression - her eyes look to be full of kindness and love. The blues of her outfit and the kitchen walls, contrasting with the red of the little curtain, are also attractive. Great work, well done.

This is a great environmental portrait of an elderly gentleman sharing his music with anyone who passes by his chosen doorway. He looks to be very aged, but his fingers look to be nimble, and he obviously still has the strength to manage the weight of the accordion, which also looks fairly aged and well-played too! I like your black & white conversion, which draws the viewer to his gaze and his face. Your lowish point of view also adds to the strength of the shot. You have captured an expression showing a little weariness and sorrow, but I hope he still gets a lot of pleasure from his music, and judging by the coins in his case, gives pleasure to others too. Great capture of this elderly entertainer, well done on your top ten placing.

A overall comment to start off with:- I knew I had a judging challenge on my hands when I realised that I had 32 images in my definite top 10!!! The standard of many of the images entered was extremely high, and making the judging decision was a hard (but enjoyable) challenge. In the end, I chose images which for me seemed to capture the spirit of the individual, giving me a sense of their character and glimpse into their life, and also offer some insight or reflection into aging and the elderly (as well as being technically good photographically).

On to the winning image. I loved this image from the start. It is clearly a posed shot, but a very moving one where the lady wants her story to be told. It perfectly captures the physical realities of aging, as we see this gentle looking elderly lady as she is now, and as a beautiful young girl (with virtually identical poses!). The lady looks as if she is carrying some sadness in her heart, as she holds the portrait of her younger self - taken at a time when she would have been full of hopes and dreams for her future. In the intervening years, I hope at least some of her dreams came true. Technically, I like the central composition (which makes the lady the clear focus), the tones and the lighting. The rich blues and reds in the background give warmth to the shot and the colouring looks natural. A beautiful and touching winning image. Congratulations

This is such a special, tender moment you have captured, which shows the love between the elderly man and the young baby. The close crop into the faces increases our connection to the intimate emotion of the scene, as there is nothing to distract. Conversion to black & white also removes any distraction colour may have brought. Technically maybe not the most perfect shot - some of the highlights are maybe a little over-exposed, and a slightly narrower aperture may have avoided the blurring on the man's cheek. But the main bits are in focus - the eyes and the nose touching the soft smoothness of the baby's skin. However, this shot is all about deep emotion and feelings, which is here in plenty. Well done on this special capture.

The title/description of this image is given as "Mary", which is all I know about his lady. But through your capture of her face in this lovely, straightforward portrait, I am sure I would love to know Mary, as she looks to be a strong but kind, gentle soul, full of wisdom and fun. I like the black and white conversion, and the straight-on pose I am sure gives us exactly what you intended to - "Mary" - nothing more, nothing less. Being a little picky, I may have found some way to avoid the little bit of reflective glare on her spectacles, but still a beautiful portrait. Great work.

This is a beautiful, gentle portrait which has captured this kindly looking lady in a moment of quiet contemplation. She looks to be sitting in front of a fire, and I like how you have captured its warm glow on her cup and in the catch lights in her eyes. I also really like how you have lit the scene, which reveals lovely detail in her face and clothing, whilst retaining a wonderful softness with no harsh highlights or shadows on her face - the whole image has the look of a classsic oil painting. Beautiful image, well done.

Fabulous image of this kindly-looking elderly lady. The more I looked at it during the judging, the higher up the top ten it crept! I love the composition, framing and warm, rich, but gentle colouring. You have achieved superbly sharp focus on her eyes. The lighting you have used brings her to life in front of us, as her eyes are bright and smiling and we can see the effects of age (and presumably weather) on her skin. (Thank you too for your additional description, giving us bit of her story, which certainly adds to the enjoyment of judging - much better than an "untitled" with no description at all, which many entrants offer!) Great image, well done.