Museums and galleries

The museum crowd in this image seem to be spilling out of the bottom of the painting. It's a fantastic, candid scene that perfectly evokes the chaos and bustle of standing in front of a famous painting (the Mona Lisa in this case) or visiting a popular exhibition in its last days. It assumes a new significance given that we haven't had this sort of proximity to each other for a while now, and that in itself evokes a reaction to the image.

This image was one of the few in this contest that successfully showed both the artwork and the gaze of the viewer. The woman is totally engaged with the artwork, and it's easy to see why. The vignetting of the image amplifies that connection, and the picture frames deliver a wonderful variety of tones.

This image has a simple, strong, beautiful composition, and for me exemplified the design of so many modern galleries, which deliver clean, stripped back and functional interiors for their exhibitions. The view out to sea is obviously a key element that helps this image stand out from a lot of the other gallery shots that were entered. The lighting is well handled, exposing for the outdoors and then letting the interior naturally be darker as a result.

My winning image in this wonderful Museums and Galleries contest. The quality of the entries has been staggering, and choosing my Top 10 was (as usual) a heart-breaking task as so many more images deserved a mention.

In this case technical skill and a great location meets an incredibly high cute factor, and a reminder that museums and galleries are such wonderful places to start to expand the minds of our little ones (and their teddies). The image has a simplicity that keeps us entirely focussed on our young gallery visitor, and I find it a joy to behold.

I was hoping for at least one image in my Top 10 that paid homage to the gallery staff and educators who guard and bring to life the art. I was lucky that we had this fabulous image that does just that, in a highly engaging and well shot way. Great animation in the educator, and I like the varying degrees of interest being shown from the schookids.

The description (in Russian) of this image reads "This is me at my photo exhibition in the Onega city museum. There was time before the opening of the exhibition and I took a picture with a radio remote control." It's a great image showing a gallery on a different scale, and with the artist himself in the scene, proudly surrounded by his work. You get 20-odd pictures for the price of one here, and it's enjoyable to learn more about the photographer and his interests from the work he's displaying.

This image very nearly made my Top 10, and is a lovely moment that made me smile. It reminded me of some of Cartier-Breson's images of scenes that he would find and then stake out, waiting for the right character to enter the frame, which I'm imagining the photographer did in this case.

A really lovely idea from the photographer, to bring the viewers into the image, and in doing so to really bring the painting to life. A perfect choice of painting for this, with the crowd on all sides witnessing Napoleon's coronation.

There were a fair few images of transport museums in this contest - planes, trains, cars in particular, and they're not always easy places to photograph. In my opinion this was the best of the bunch. It's a beautifully composed and executed shot of this Lancaster, lovely detail in the roof too, and subtle but effective post-processing has given it a rich feel and helped the colours really come to life. I tried not to be too swayed by nostalgia, as I did visit RAF Coningsby with my Dad a few years ago and saw this famous plane in the flesh.

Not many photographers can say that they've produced an image of this quality. The City of Arts & Sciences in Valencia is an impressive collection of modern architecture, and here it's shown at its best. A beautiful sunset, a 191 second exposure, and clever use of the shallow lakes that surround the buildings have produced a truly stunning image. Well done.

What a beautifully observed moment, and now that I'm imagining the statue taking a selfie of himself I just can't see it any other way! Great skill and deftness shown in having only the female selfie-taker standing still amongst the moving crowd. This image is my unofficial 11th place in the contest, and I'm sorry it didn't sneak into the Top 10.

Another image that only just lost out on a Top 10 spot for me, and just a really nicely filled frame, beautiful colours, composition, that wonderful reflection on the floor, and a really nice encapsulation of those moments in galleries when you're giving your feet a rest and getting properly engrossed in a piece of art.

What a fabulously observed and playful composition, and well worth a mention. I love a square crop, and it's used to very good effect here, with no bit of the image left to waste.

A really fun image, and titled 'Stend(h)al Syndrome' - something new to me, which is apparently the ability of one to become ill from taking in too much beauty at an art gallery, but seemingly only if you're in Florence.

Another stunning image that just missed my Top 10. The intricate detail of the Cutty Sark makes the perfect subject for a silhouetted shot like this, and just enough of the surrounding buildings are shown to firmly anchor (so to speak) the ship in its urban setting. The placing of the setting/rising sun gives a nice feel of the ship surging forward to destinations afar.