Farming

I love this shot of the Highland cattle. The animal exudes a quiet strength and seems to be posing for the camera. The wind whipped fur adds to the shot, as does the moody cloud filled sky. The placement of the animal is also nice and draws the viewers' eye directly to the furry animal.

This is a perfect moody shot of sheep on a foggy day. The fog helps to pop the sheep off the background. The gaze of may of the sheep looking directly into the camera lens is wonderful and connects the viewer to this rather haunting image.

This image tells a beautiful story of grain and how it's harvested. The curvy lines at the top of the frame go so well with the straight lines of wheat at the bottom of the frame. The placement of the tractor is wonderful and the movement to the right it creates is great. Time of day played a big part in getting this image to shine too. The color palette is soft and smooth, which was created by choosing the right time of day to photograph the harvest.

This image is outstanding on so many levels. The raw emotion is palpable. The early morning light with the use of a high iso and a slow shutter speed allowed the photographer to capture pure magic. The boys gaze at the camera is so strong. The way the cattle are lying trustingly around him, along with other people in the middle ground only serve to reinforce the sublime. The early morning light and the color it creates is beautiful and transcends the photograph into something uniquely special. A moment in time perfectly photographed. Bravo!

This is a beautiful shot of this large herd of sheep. I love the depth created by the sheer number of sheep in the shot. The horizon line is well placed and the use of a faster shutter speed to freeze the motion of the sheep is also well thought out.

These hay bales look monolithic and are well placed in the frame. The viewers eye is easily brought into the frame by the low angle and forced perspective of the wide angle lens. The shadow side of the has has been well exposed without causing the sunny spots to blow out.

This is a very sweet shot of sheep farming. I love the black cattle dog diligently and efficiently herding the sheep where they need to go. The use of a fast shutter speed catches all the motion here and we can easily pick out each individual sheep, as well as the dog. The framing is also nice with the action taking place across the frame from right to left.

Wonderful shot of a farmer with his goats. The use of black and white is great and gives the photo a level playing field. Color might detract. The all black sheep are well placed throughout the frame and the farmer tending the tree mimics the sheep in an interesting way.

This image exudes much feeling. You get an idea for how hard both the water buffalo and the farmer are working. Both have been captured in motion that has been caught with a shutter speed fast enough to freeze them. The patterns created created by the fields are beautiful. The mood is quiet, the light flat and subdued which contrasts nicely with the movement of the action happening in the center of the frame.

I love the playfulness and sheer beauty of this image. Another simple yet complex entry in this competition. While the two farmers are both rather centrally located within the frame, the pattern that they're making in the rice crop, along with the horizontal white line at the top of the frame make the symmetry work well. The sharp shadows that the farmers create also help to give the right side of the frame interest. The high shutter speed captured the movement of the farmers so crisply! The farmers, rice crop and shadows all feel flattened and pressed down. I'm not sure if the is a drone shot or a lucky high angle but it works. The colors also blends well. The female farmers colorful dress pops out against the rice. The male farmers clothing blends in with the rice, which also works well and doesn't take away from the other elements in the scene.

Many things come together well to make this a stand out image. Time of day, backlit water and what must have been a break in an otherwise cloudy sky make the shot glow. The movement of the water is beautiful. There are no humans in this shot and yet it feels very human to me. The hard line of the stream of water juxtaposed with the painterly quality of the spray is reminiscent of life. This is an image of contrasts. The use of a long lens helped to compress the space and sharply brings out main subject, the water and the machine.

I love the patterns created by the rice fields. The photographer definitely chose a good time of day, as the light reflected off the water brings the shot to life and gives it depth. The people scattered about anchor the shot and bring the human aspect to it. I'm guessing this is a drone shot due to the high angle which helps to define the space. The line of women, along with the person walking and the person with the cow working in the field help the viewer to relate to the work being done here.

Another painterly drone shot that aptly tells the story of the harvest. Time of day and the use of curvy and straight lines gives this image plenty of visual movement. The quality of light that late night photography creates is alluring. The green of the tractor against the greenish wheat field works well. There is order and symmetry here, mixed with a monochromatic color palette that works well. The warm yellow light of the tractors pops well and the image wouldn't be as strong with out those pops of light.

This image is a show stopper! It's so simple and yet exceedingly powerful. The use of black and white helps to ad to the grit the viewer already feels. Potatoes, feet and hoe all perfectly together and yet distinctly their own. The one leaf and the roots add a beautiful second read. The snarled bare feet mimic the same in the potatoes beautifully. This is a haunting image worthy of much thought. Smart to use a 400 shutter speed here. The lens is very wide so you could get away with a wide open aperture to take advantage of the natural light and still keep the image sharp throughout.

This image is wonderful in that there is both simplicity and movement everywhere. The eye can dance around nicely. The use of a high shutter speed to freeze the rice paddy farmers works well with the sharpness of the tight f-stop.. The patterns in the rice and the placement of the farmers and the mound is spot on. I can't tell if this is a drone shot or a lucky high angle but the composition is wonderful. The color palette is perfect. The blue of the farmers shirt pops perfectly against its complimentary color yellow. If the other farmers' shirt had been red, it would have detracted from the image. Everything is working here beautifully. Well done!