Emptiness

A lot of the 'emptiness' photos we received also suggested abandonment, such as this derelict ballroom. While the sky that you can see through the holes in the roof is blown out, the judges still singled the shot out as one that is technically very demanding: the lack of light within the building would have made exposing the shot very difficult, yet a fantastic amount of detail is clear even within the shadows at ground level. The choice of a wide lens has distorted the perspective, and the way the vertical columns appear to lean adds to the sense of the structure's fragility.

You know a person is present - the hands give it away - but with no visible face the sitter is as much a mystery as the setting. His empty hood gives you no hint of emotion. Is he like you, the viewer, or like the empty darkness behind him? The judges loved the lighting in this shot, carefully placed to ensure shadows fell in just the right place to reveal and conceal the sitter all at the same time.

So many 'emptiness' shots are melancholy, yet this one feels strangely serene. The pale green tones and the turquoise beyond the windows give the image a sense of calmness, and while the room is dirty and the armchair damaged, there is nonetheless the feeling of a light and airy emptiness – that the space is waiting to be refilled rather than collapsing in on itself. As with the image of the ballroom, there's good control of the light and shadow in this shot, and while parts are blown out there's lots of detail where it counts.

Clean and simple, an empty swing. And yet this simple picture is beautifully shot. There's a full range of tones from black to white. The background is defocussed to the point of being almost abstract, with the chain of the distant swing being reduced to a series of circles. Both swings are still; you know that the movement and sound that should be present in a playground are absent. Converting the shot to monochrome takes another layer of life from the image, emptying it further.

Roads, paths, piers and other man-made walkways leading into an empty landscape make great subjects on the theme of 'emptiness'. What sets this image apart is the way the photographer has made the road such a strong and prominent element. The viewer can see that there's desert beyond, desert which will be empty. The texture of sand on the road adds interest, while the white lines and fence draw the viewer into the picture, without detracting from the sensation of there being nothing beyond.