The 1980s

I remember doing this myself! Draw the curtains, open the shutter, hand-fire the flash, move and repeat. Of course with film you didn't know what the outcome was going to be until days later, so quite a bit of experimentation was needed.

With the benefit of 30+ years of hindsight, perhaps you'll agree that moving the front chair out of the shot completely would have been better, and hiding the presence of the flashgun is always tricky. I think everyone reading this should try it tonight, if they haven't done so before. Maybe there's a suitable contest theme in the offing.

I thought this stood out among the modern captures on 80's themes. Nicely composed, with the 2 Tone logo recognizable, but out of focus in the background, which helps convey a sense of nostalgia. Black and white is of course an excellent choice for the label.

The 1980's were certainly a time of protest. It would have been nice to have more background info on this image. I'm guessing from the placard that it was the huge 'Nuclear Freeze' rally in Central Park, which this photo prompted me to read up on, highlighting the importance of social documentary photography such as this. I was drawn to the contrast between the two faces: the woman looks calm; the man, somewhat suspicious of the photographer. And they both look superbly 80's. Given current world affairs, it's also a timely reminder of the fears we lived with back then and the importance of the voices and actions of the people.

OK, it's not a 1980's photo (and to be fair the photographer has made it clear that it isn't), but it could be, couldn't it? I can't remember how much I paid for T-Shirts in the 80's, so maybe the £6.99 label is a clue (and could be cropped out). It's a nicely observed piece of environmental portraiture, enhanced by the inclusion of the word 'trendsetters'.

Today, panoramic stitching is fairly easy and can often be done automatically in camera. In 1989 that wasn't the case and I appreciate the effort the photographer has gone to here. It isn't perfect, but it captures an important moment in history and the panoramic view helps bring a sense of the scale of the proceedings.

Soft focus - check. 80's hair - check. 80's fashion - check. I liked that this is a selfie, decades before they were a thing, and the backstory, which tells a tale from the days of film - the official wedding photos were, when they finally appeared, a huge disappointment. Modern technology has, in theory, made that a thing of the past, and this contest was all about the past.

There were several punk pictures, but I chose this one as a more telling environmental portrait. Those hairstyles took more effort than most people gave credit for. The total ignorance of health and safety, the ghetto blaster and the string vest all combine to make this a great record of a time.

This is a photo that merits more study than most will give it online. Yes, it's muddy and grainy, yes, the photographer hasn't attempted to 'shop out the creases, yes, it could have done with a bit more exposure in the shadows. Taken in 1982, you could argue that it has more of a 70's vibe, but what's certain is you couldn't take it today. Photography has always had an important role to play in recording what will become the past, and recording it authentically, which is in danger of being lost in the punch-and-clarity-driven world of 21st century online imagery. I thank the photographer for not attempting to 'fix' anything.

The composition is spot on, with the diagonal of the river leading the eye to the twin towers a third of the way in from the left edge. If you look closely at the buildings in the foreground you almost get a tilt-shift effect, and you start to appreciate the scale of the city you are looking at.

It didn't make my top 10, but... The carpet! The jumpsuit! The hair and makeup! Bang on theme. Looking at the current crowd voting, it's the other image by this photographer that people prefer, but to me this has more energy in the pose and expression, and doesn't suffer from the error of the accidentally reflected direct flash, which we've all made at some time.

I want William Daniels as the voice of my sat nav. We don't know the story of how this photo came about, but it doesn't matter. It's KITT. It's so 80's. This was how we imagined cars would be in the future. Incidentally, I was once mistaken for Michael Knight by a small boy in a hotel and had to speak into my watch every time he saw me for the rest of the holiday.

Photographically, it would have been easy to get this wrong in both exposure and depth of field, but the photographer has done a good job of capturing the black surfaces and illuminated panels.

Photographically, I thought this image was perhaps too simple to merit being placed higher, but nostalgically it's on the money. It was certainly a busy year for this gig-goer, and what great bands they were. And look at the prices...