On a Shelf

There were understandably a high number of entries into this contest featuring books on shelves, but this one stood out as being a little different, in the main due to the unusual viewpoint. With a theme such as this, I tend to favour images which have been carefully composed and shot directly head-on to the subject, and while this is a shot well aligned with the shelves, the view looking up the bookshelves adds a certain dynamic and draws the attention. Everything looks well focused and there are a good range of tones and rich deep colours to perfectly detail these old books so typical of many ancient libraries and secondhand book stores, before the more modern picture-based paperback covers came into being. Great image, well done on your top ten placing.

I always love a good wool shop, so an image showing a selection of colourful yarns has much appeal to me. Capturing an image in a shop is likely to give little opportunity to spend time on composition and taking several different exposures, but the composition works well, with the shelving edges more-or-less mimicking the 'third' compositional guides. Although the yarn was already laid out in this way by the shopkeeper, I love the range of colours that fill the frame, and the balance of light reveals some great textures on the balls of wool. Being picky, I may have been tempted to selectively increase the exposure slightly on the top right corner where the darker yarns could maybe benefit from a little more light, but still a great image. Well done on your top ten placing.

I think I have reviewed this image before, and I like it just as much now as I did then, and for me it has not lost any of its impact. The image is dominated by white, which is never an easy 'colour' to capture successfully, but the colour balance is spot on with no ugly colour-cast, and lighting has been well controlled to give good exposure and gentle shadows to reveal shape and form. The pop of green from the spiky plant and the dark grey of its pot, give a good contrast and act as a strong focal point. Congratulations on your third place finish.

A great image of a minimalist interior, showing neat storage baskets on the simple white shelves. The pop of green from the plant really helps bring the image to life. I will often prefer images with subjects such as shelves to be shot head-on, but here the angled view brings a good dynamic to the shot and also allows us a glimpse of the setting, with part of the room visible in the background, rendered softly out of focus through the use of a wide aperture. Good exposure of the image brings a lovely lightness and airy feel, without being over-bright. Congratulations on your second place finish.

A beautifully light and airy interior shot, I can almost fell the sea breeze drifting in through the window. Although the subject of the image for this contest is relatively small in the frame, through the open doors of the cabinet the eye is drawn immediately to the shelves and the neat display on show. Lovely capture of the colours, with the pretty blue of the unit contrasting with the pale orange on the flooring. Good balance of lighf, bringing a delicate brightness to the shot. Great image, well done on your top ten placing.

This was a late entry into my top ten which I somehow overlooked initially, but I was drawn back to it on further review by the lovely capture of the light and the simplicity and naturalness of the shot. The light looks to be natural, coming in from an angle above, which nicely picks out and highlights some areas on the leaves and flowers and casts some interesting shadows. Colouring overall is lovely, with grey of the textured backdrop and the shades of brown on the shelf and pot, enabling the bolder hues of the plant itself with its beautiful flowers to shine out of the image. Simple but beautiful, the more I look the more I like it. Well done on your top ten placing.

A striking high contrast image, the white shapes of the pottery standing out against the dark backdrop so as to take on a rather abstract feel. The lighting casts strong shadows to reveal the shape and form of the pottery, but as the direction of the light looks to be falling from quite high, the shadows to not hide any of the other subjects positioned behind. I don't know if this is a set-up or as found, but the arrangement of pieces has a pleasing undulating line. Great work, well done on your top ten placing.

Humour in an image can be very difficult to get right, as what appeals to one is considered the height of naff by another. I do not tend to go for such images, but this one caught my attention and it ended up in my top ten placings. Perfectly on brief for the contest, imaginative and well executed photographically. Focus is fully sharp on the cactus 'crew', with the soft bokeh of the backdrop adding little circles of interest but coming nowhere near dominating the shot as some backgrounds can. A great, quirky image, raising a little smile along the way. Well done on your top ten placing.

A slightly unusual composition for a still-life image, but one that is rather appealing and very well executed. I am not sure if the subject was arranged to "look like" something, but the cascade of folded fabric, in setting with the arrangement of the vase and lemons, brings to mind the shape of a magnificent bird with sweeping tail feathers. The lighting is lovely, with plenty of range in tones to create depth and form, but everything retains a delicate softness. The colour palette adds further appeal, with soft browns and greys, and even though the yellow of the lemons is bright and bold, it somehow avoids taking over the composition. Congratulations on your winning image.