Straight Lines

This is just the type of image I was looking for in this contest - one which loudly shouts out "straight lines". The image has been superbly composed and framed, with care taken to ensure all the uprights are true. Everything is in sharp focus, and the light has been well balanced, as the sunlight is bright and casting strong shadows, but the shadows have been lifted sufficiently to reveal detail throughout. A good range of natural looking colours too. The figure in the centre of the frame adds a tiny but important human element to the shot, bringing a bit of life to a scene otherwise filled with architecture. Congratulations on your winning image.

What a fabulous subject choice for this contest, as there are straight lines in abundance. The view along the rows of seats with the strong perspective lines drawing the eye are obvious, but I especially like the way you have captured the lines formed by the seat armrests, which have been beautifully picked out by the brighter areas of light. I love the colouring across the image, with the rich red of the seat fabric and the golden shades where the light picks out the seat backs, really lifting the image as the colours pop out of the darkness. A simple subject but well captured to create a strong image. Great work, well done on your top ten placing.

The gorgeous lighting captured here drew my attention to this image as soon as I saw it, and it was always in contention for a top three placing. Use of a telephoto lens has nicely compressed the perspective, emphasising the uprights of the row of colums extending down the street. A lovely selection of rich colours bring a real vibrancy to the image, and the long shadows and beautiful warm light suggest the image was captured towards the end of the day. An uncomplicated scene, filling the frame, wonderfully captured. Congratulations on your second place finish.

The attached image description indicates a tilt-shift lens was used to control the uprights, and the precision of the work in insuring the verticals are true has really paid off, as we have a bold, graphic architectural shot. The subject is obvious, but the simple shapes and lines bring a strong abstract feel to the shot too, which I really like. Although I have not seen the colour version of this image, I am sure it works best in monochrome, and the conversion to black and white has been expertly carried out, with a great range of tones which bring the subject to life. Loving everything about it! Great image, well done on your top ten placing.

This image was a late entry to my top ten, but was one I kept coming back to. The colours are rather garish and the shot is rather over-exposed, so I feel I should not really like it, but I love it! There is a strong graphic element to the shot, through the strong patterns of straight lines and the reflections, and there is a abstract feel to the image which for me makes it really work. The vivid greens and bright blues are balanced by the whites and crisp black outlines to the architectural structure, the more I look the more I appreciate the image. Great work, well done on your top ten placing.

Shots of long straight roads with diminishing perspective can sometimes be a bit clichéd, but there is something about this image which is just that bit different. I love the moodiness created by the arrival of the storm, and the dark bluey grey of the brooding clouds contrasts nicely with the rich yellow of the line down the road, and the browns of the surrounding land. Being picky, there is an area of sky which is perhaps over bright, and I don't know if maybe it would be possible to selectively reduce the brightness there in image editing without creating a patch of flat ugly grey. Alternatively it may work if a patch of cloud from below the bright area is cloned over the bright area at very low opacity to avoid showing any duplicated cloud detail, but bring in slightly darker tones. Still an appealing image however. Well done on your top ten placing.

Images based on shadows only, rather than including the actual subject too, can look so simple, but they take a keen photographic eye to spot the potential for an image in the first place, and careful composition of the dark lines against a flat surface to ensure the resulting image is interesting to view. Conversion to black and white has worked well here, and although darker tones prevail, there is good contrast and a feeling of lightness to the image too. Congratulations on your third place finish.

Such s simple subject, well seen and well captured. The composition and framing works really well, with the lines running on the diagonals in both directions. Everything is in clear focus and the light well controlled, as the image has plenty of textural details and the contrasts give a sense of depth to the steps. Great image, well done on your top ten placing.

An interesting subject choice, but one that works really well for this contest due to the abundance of straight lines. The image has been especially well composed and framed, with the just the right amount of the harpist being captured in the frame to show plenty of detail without looking too cropped. I especially like that you have been able to capture one of the strings 'mid-pluck' with the vibrating movement of the string visible. Good focus on the hands and strings, with softer bokeh highlights in the background. Great image, well done on your top ten placing.