Harbours, Quays and Ports

This is an interesting way to address the brief. Photographing a graphic interpretation of what constitutes a port, and even including a sign "Port of Antwerp" is clever and rather cheeky, too. I particularly like that the actual port is included, albeit as a reflection. This is expertly composed with a neat balance of information: architecture, graphic iimage, signage, ground and reflected image.

Such a simple idea for a photograph: to capture the curving lines of a dropped rope end. This simple subject is offset by the solid forms and diagonal lines of wharf and water. Perfectly composed. Sharp and detailed. It reminds we photographers that strong photographs can be discovered if we look hard enough.

It is the balance between the scale of the linear shapes of the container wharf cranes with the tiny paddle boards and their riders, that works so very well. Coupled with this is the contrast of cool blue hues and band of warm sunset light. The big, clear blue sky and shimmering water provides a minimal canvas upon which the central band of detailed information rests neatly mid-frame and provides the context and the aforementioned contrast of scale. The seeming stillness of the scene accentuates this further.

There is a wonderful flux of shapes, lines, colours and textures in this photograph. My eye go straight to the jumbled texture of the orange nets at centre, then bounces to the lower foreground, to the figure at right, to the figures mid-background (left) and the water and distant shoreline beyond. The complimentary warm orange and cool blue hues work very well together. There is also a hint of magenta. That latter point is reinforced upon reading that the photographer was working with a trusted film stock, Velvia which has an inbuilt colour enhancement (which from my experience held a magenta tinge) that works very well with scenes such as this. I appreciate the actions of the fishers, the passing boat, the texture of the nets and those cats in the foreground. I also appreciated the photographer's description of how they made this photograph.

It is the wonderful zigzag of lines in this composition that attracted me. My eye goes to the stack of timber bottom left of frame, follows the wharf wall to the gangplanks, which in turn lead me to the boats, from which I follow their bow lines to the rigging, and up and into the mess of mast lines. Coupled with that are the figures which provide action and scale. Such a scene would be little changed over many years — the wooden boats, still active, echo times long gone, and so remind us of the world's diversity.

Whilst viewing the many wondrous, exotic and beautiful places and scenes that this competition has presented, it is important to remember that the world is not perfect. This photograph presents a very strong message that we must all consider and grant it the respect it deserves. Scenes such as this should not be ignored.

Photographically, it is expertly composed: the diagonal components of scrubby land (top left corner), central band of shoreline detail, and the water (bottom left corner), provide an excellent edge-of-frame* balance. Within this structure the detritus of manmade objects and natural vegetation provide an assymetric matted pattern of sorts that contain several 'mini' vignettes, for example: the water reflections, the upturned chair, the half-submerged tyre, and the orange container. These are both upsetting and strangely beautiful in their own way.

This is a thoughtful and important photograph that provides balance to the many excellent photographs portraying the beauty, novelty and scale of harbours, quays and ports. It deserves its place amongst the best.

• edge-of-frame is a formal compositional approach that suggests that information within the frame extends beyond it.