Singapore

I have seen this view in many images and indeed many of the entries to this competition feature elements in this image. Where this one stands out from the rest is in the capture of the beautiful golden sunrise and how this is reflected in the golden tones in the rest of the image. For me this image clearly stood out from the crowd.

Thank you for entering this image in m y "Singapore" competition. The "Merlion" is a well photographed landmark in Singapore, but this image takes it to another level for a number off reasons.

Although it has been shot into direct sunlight, the exposure has been controlled to allow some detail in the shadow, the braces on the young boy's shorts for example add to the cuteness factor, but these could easily have been lost.

The overall tone is set by the rising sun and is warm and inviting. The father and son captured in the foreground really humanises the shot for me while giving scale and perspective.

When I set this competition I said I was looking for diversity and while this is image is of a common landmark I do think it has the diversity that I was looking for.

The photographer of this image describes it as "some very cool street art" and indeed it is that. However, the street art in itself would not have made a good image without further context. Waiting until the pedestrian was right between the eyes has created perfect context and scale for this art installation.

In the brief for this competition I emphasised that I wanted diversity and this certainly delivers.

I want to say simple, but I am sure that would significantly undermine the effort that went into achieving this great image, so I will describe it as elegant and effective. The light across the whole scene is just perfect and I am left wondering how it was achieved at 1/20th of a second at a location where I would imagine tripods are not welcome.

The Gardens by the Bay featured in many of the entries to this competition and there were some great images. However, this one contained additional elements, the reflection, the tones created by the rising sun and the effect of the long exposure all combine to create an image that stood out from the crowd in my opinion.

Another well known Singapore landmark photographed in a way that makes it stand out from the crowd. This elevated perspective not only showcases the Temple perfectly but puts its location into the context of the surrounding high rise urban sprawl of Singapore.