Fine dining

This image is brilliantly dynamic. The curving lines of the prawns and asparagus carry your eye around the plate, while the chopsticks intersect with the background in a more abrupt, spiky manner. While there's a lot of black in the shot – the plate, the background, the chopstick trim – the textures have been brought out with careful lighting. When you think more about the food it's not really a meal as such, but the photo as a whole definitely gives the impression of fine dining!

This is a very simple shot, but one that's very nicely done. Tones have been very carefully restricted, so only pale ones are really visible. The gypsophila strewn around serves two purposes: its bobbly shape echoes champagne bubbles, giving a lighthearted, bubbly feel, and it creates an interesting texture in the defocused areas of the image. (The glasses, of course, are nicely sharp.) Gypsophila is also a classic flower for wedding bouquets, so creates a narrative context for the pair of glasses.

If you're going to shoot a still-life of a single ingredient, it had better be good – and this one is good. To start with, the subject has been carefully chosen so the tail and the patterned surface of the prawn are both intact, because any flaw in what you're shooting will show up extremely clearly at this scale. Careful lighting ensures details are clear and shadows are kept to a minimum, though there's just enough shadow to ensure the prawn doesn't look as though it's floating aimlessly in space.

The topic of the competition was 'fine dining', and the judges felt that this photo, while clearly a studio one, looked like the sort of pudding you'd be served in a very fancy restaurant, completed with a scattered line of garnish. However, the photographer has very cleverly ditched the plate all together, and treated the white background as one enormous serving surface, removing the distraction of crockery and allowing the viewer to focus solely on the food. And it's all been captured before the ice cream could melt!

Chillies and ice: capturing the contrast photographically is a popular idea, but the judges really liked the way this one was done, with the ice encapsulating one end of the fruit. While the shot has clearly benefited from some work in post-production, the initial set-up was obviously planned well in advance, and the editing has been very neatly done to create an arresting image – the first thing you notice is the contrast between hot and cold, not the editing work.

This photo leaped out, thanks to the strong lines and bright colours. The judges really liked the use of the orange background, which complemented the colours of the sauces, and proves that studio shots don't have to be taken on a black or white background to work. The swoop of sauces and oil and the edge of the plate draw the viewer's eye down through the photo, while the scattered peppercorns and herbs give it a casual, less staged feel.

The judges felt this shot looks as though it could have come straight out of a cookbook – and they'd quite like the recipe! The dish in the centre looks perfect, with every element carefully placed, and that contrasts beautifully with the scattered cloves of garlic and plates of chopped raw ingredients. The lighting, with the dish and jar of spice casting short shadows, has a natural feel, which adds to the 'cook this at home' feel of the overall image.

Clever use of editing software has increased the impact of this photo. Colour has been removed from everything except the dish on the plate, so the complementary red of the chilli and green of the puree and leaf really pop. There's more to the image than post-production trickery, however: the textures of the placemat and the just-visible wooden table add extra interest, while the strong angles of the cutlery frames the food and adds a dynamic element that would be lacking if the dish had been shot straight on.

A lot of still lifes were entered for this competition, but the judges felt this one stood out particularly because of the quality of the lighting, which makes the ice cubes look almost as though they are glowing from within, and bringing out the colour of the liquid, which is only really visible on its surface and when the ice cubes are seen through it. There's reflection below the glass is also very clear, and that's a nice touch, making the glass feel more tangible.

This Mad Hatter's Tea Party clearly took a great amount of work to shoot. The judges liked the way the models are confidently grouped together, providing a clear focal point – if they'd been more widely spaced, the viewer might see more of each, but the picture wouldn't have worked half as well. Careful use of depth of field ensures the objects in the foreground are blurred enough to be recognisable without drawing attention away from the models, and slight overexposure lends the whole scene an appropriately dreamy air.