Bags, luggage & cases

Maybe not an obvious choice for some for a top ten placing, but I love this image and think it deserves credit. The toning of the image and shallow depth of field suits the subject, and the casual set up of the scarf tied loosely around the bag works well too. The decision where to crop/frame an image is often not easy, and here I think it has worked to best effect, by cropping in close and leaving little bare surrounding space. The more I look, the more I like it!

An emotional portrait and a high quality image. The lighting, focusing and composition draw us immediately to the eyes of the model, even though they are downcast, and unusually placed almost at the very top of the frame. I may have been inclined to crop slightly into the sides of the image, maybe taking away up to half of the negative space each side, but that is just personal preference. Beautiful monochrome work, great story-telling. Well done.

This is a strong image which stood out for me from the first time I saw it. The composition works well, with the vertical tree in one third, and the lady with the unusual bag in the other section, and the bag being centrally placed. Your decision as to how much of the model to include in the shot for me is perfect. A wide aperture has enabled the background to be softly out of focus, and the colours compliment each other wonderfully. If I have one tiny criticism, it is that to me the back of the model's right hand is maybe a little bright/over-exposed (if I tilt my screen back to get the exposure right there, the rest of the shot is under-exposed a little.) That is however only a minor point. A beautiful image, well deserving of its first place.

This is another stand-out image of the many entries using old recreated railway stations as the setting. What I especially like here is the strong diagonal lines leading us down the platform, contrasting with the horizontal and vertical beams above. The HDR treatment works well with the subject, and the subtle colouring is great. If I were being picky, I may be inclined to slightly darken the brighter lighting showing from outside at the end of the platform, which could be a little distracting, but that is just a small thing. Sharp focusing throughout, well done.

This is a great image which is really well set up, composed and lit. I am not usually a fan of this type of matte/low contrast, minimally saturated finish, but I love the effect here, and it suits the scene perfectly. I think you are spot on with your judgement of the level of colour saturation to use, just a hint of blue on the coat and shoes, and a similar hint of brown on the leaves, case and bear (very photogenic bear too!). Congratulations on your second place.

This is a fabulous, striking portrait taken from an unusual angle. I am initially drawn to her eyes, but then, due to the more-or less triangular shape of the pose, look then to her shoes in one corner, and the all important bag which the model is firmly clutching. The distressed background suits the image perfectly and contrasts with the crisp clothing, and the colours work together wonderfully. Well focused, well lit. Great image, well done.

There were many olde worlde recreated images entered into this contest, and this was one of the stand out ones for me. The HDR treatment has helped balance the lighting, which I imagine was tricky to control - dark room, dark objects, bright natural window light and artificial lamp-light. Composition is great, with the foreground cases forming leading lines to take us into the rest of the image to explore everything else in the scene. Really love the subtle colouring too. Great image, well done.

This was a late addition to my top ten, but I decided to select this image for a placing as you succeeded where a lot of others who chose a similar subject did not. There were several entries which showed bags for sale, but many of those had rather distracting elements also included in the shot, such as price tags, rails or other shop fittings. Whilst on a shop stall these cannot be moved out of the way, you have carefully positioned yourself and your camera and by moving in close, and standing straight-on to the subject, you have avoided including any such clutter, and the frame is filled with a jazzy array of brightly coloured cloth bags. Good control of light and shade which shows the drape and folds of the fabric. Well done on your top ten placing

A bold image, with the impossible-to-miss bright shiny red bag, suiting the brief for this contest perfectly. I think for me what make this image so successful is the use of only four colours (including black & white) across the entire picture. Composition is good, with the bag placed on the left third line, and the angle of the wall/floor join adds a slightly quirky feel to the shot. Great work.

There were several entries into this contest which featured this art installation in Liverpool, and this was my favorite. The monochrome processing suits the subject well, as it gives a rough, battered feel, giving a good impression of leather in the stonework. Being critical, I would have maybe darkened off the top left corner area, where the road edge and markings are a little distracting, or maybe added a vignette to the image. Still a great shot, and deserving of its place in the top ten.