Strangers in the street

Heart-warming and heart-breaking both at the same time. An excellent snapshot of real emotion, of a sweet and fleeting moment. The crop is good and works for this composition as does the format.

It's always a challenge shooting a subject facing the sun directly as the shadows can be harsh and hard and depth and layering can be limited. But that is street photography – one cannot control location and lighting all the time. This image is a good capture despite the challenges. Well done!

Really lovely photo, especially with all the ambient light captured on the image. I know that using hyperfocal distance is very tricky and you did a good job in getting it almost accurate despite the movement and not knowing the exact spot she would be walking into. Truly commendable.

I feel this could be improved if the face was tack sharp (though I appreciate that was probably impossible to achieve given the situation). An area of absolute sharpness would take this image to the next level, in my humble opinion.

I love this image. It looks like a poster and painting at the same time. When I read the title "From the Hip" I realised I could completely believe if it were shot literally from the hip - camera swinging on the photographer's body as they stride away clicking the shutter simultaneously. Shot from the hip, I suspect the photographer straightened this image in relation to the horizon and that is thoroughly commendable and most apt. The vertical lines and solid colours of red, black and white ground this image solidly and give it strength. It is through this simple yet powerful way that it connects and engages with the viewer. I look at this and I feel steady and strong, despite the blur and motion. Great Job!

I enjoyed looking at this photo and was amazed at the precise moment capture of the tie blowing in the wind whilst framing the person's face perfectly. I would be interested to see this image processed in black and white thus keeping the focus solely on the man's face and the tie blowing. As it is, the brighter reds scattered in the background steal the focus away and distract the attention from the person too quickly. Perhaps a slight vignetting on the bottom sides and corners of the image would balance out the action-packed top background.

A beautiful photo perfectly captured in golden light. I admire the photographer's simple story here of the jeweller working in his studio enveloped in the soft late afternoon light. Texture has played a great role in this image: the delicate white beard against the cold and strong metals, the carefully crafted pieces of jewellery made from various materials of many colours, and the play of warm light and deep shadows. The subtle inclusion of the rectangular shape on the top left corner is great for the composition and adds interest to the story in what otherwise is a chasm in the background.

This image is thoroughly enjoyable and happy with all the warm bright colours filling the scene. The composition is strong with the main subject slightly off centre. This image could be improved in a couple of ways but I appreciate that this was captured from a moving vehicle and there was little the photographer could do. In fact, it is commendable that the photographer was able to capture this with enough sharpness for a still. Had the circumstances of taking this photo been different, this image could be improved with the use of: a) a foreground to give the scene more layers and levels, thus counteracting the "flatness" across the image where the colours were spread across horizontally – all in warm bright tones, and b) the use of contrast – stronger darks, such as the blues on the top and left-side corner, and the shadows under the tables. But overall, a wonderful image. Well done!

I love this image for many reasons. Firstly, the composition, in particluar the man on the right cut off, which gives the illusion that he is on a different plane, much closer to the viewer and thus involving the spectator immediately in the image. Then there's the tone and the colours - intense yet mysterious. I also love the light focusing on the main subject, and the play of contrasts especially with the silhouette profile of the man in the foreground.

But most of all I love the authentic expressions of the two subjects. A simple image to start with but it's evocative and draws the viewer in quickly to explore emotion and meaning in the image. Well done!

I thoroughly enjoyed looking at this image. It is so contemporary and graphic. I find that a landscape orientation is more conducive to street photography, after all, that is the orientation of how we see. And so it is an immense challenge to come up with a portrait-oriented image that is both effective and powerful. I would have loved to see this image with the man in colour for more energy and contrast, more of the candid passer-by feel and less of the curated look. A highly commendable image!

I really like this image and the story and feeling it evokes. Candid, interesting, spontaneous. I also appreciate that this is an iPhone capture and that no strong filters were used to edit this image. However, this could be imrpoved by making the blacks on the pedestrians stronger so they pop out more rather than blend into the background. The randomness of the passers-by walking in different directions and doing different things has been a super capture, showing no pretense whtsoever.

A very peculiar and most interesting image, and certainly on the conceptual side! It raises a lot of questions as to the intention of the photographer, the real story behind the capture, the meaning and significance of the portraits, and the location too. And yet this monochrome collection of portraits was casually hung in place using neon pegs which makes the image even more successful.

I feel this image could be stronger with a little more intent done in post-production, such as emphasising the vendor and making his yellow shirt pop out more. As it is, it feels like he is lost in a sea of portraits and everything blends into one plane. Other that that, a super capture!

I saw part of this image as the header of the competition and immediately thought it was a very powerful image. However, seeing the entirety of the image made me realise the intention of the photographer here, using clever composition to bring all the colours together cohesively. What struck me most was the intelligent use of layers done by using lines and angles for compositional layering and smoke and contrast for atmospheric layers. It all appears quite set-up to start with but then the viewer looks into the eyes of the subject and is convinced this is a genuine shot. Not to mention Father Christmas in the background.... you couldn't make it up! Bravo!

A very interesting image and not your usual street photography capture. But it connects to the viewer immediately and exudes a great sense of story and mystery. I love the layers and levels going on in this picture despite the simplicity of the composition. In fact, it is a stronger image for that reason. On one hand it's a little unnerving, on the other it makes me feel confident and sure. Great image and deserving to be in the top 10. Well done!

I enjoyed this image, especially because it looked like a graphic illustration made from reality. The use of colours and shapes were fun and effective and evoked many playful ideas as to what the story could be, leaving room for the viewer to surmise. In that way, this image has managed to engage with the viewer with ease.

I think this image could have been improved to top ten standard if the blurry image of the man showed him walking with both legs as an inverted v shape thus breaking up the vertical lines that dominate the image as well as mirroring the blue tracksuits hanging on the line. Other than that, it is a fun shot and great capture of a candid moment and deserving of a commendation. Well done!

This image employs the power to catch the viewer's eye in an instant. The use of strong yellows and reds contrasted with the shadows and silhouette are very effective. This image doesn't say much in terms of a story, but makes up for that vastly with the composition and the energy at play in the whole scene. It's astonishing how a simple concept of a shopper passing by can draw so much interest and emotion in the viewer. A total triumph!