26,964 Ratings
It was very tight between this image and the second-placed entry, but the judges plumped for this one as its fulfilment of the brief is so spot on. It's a bold composition, as normally we would expect a photographer to separate the two main elements in the frame, rather than 'stacking' them one in front of the other like this. It's bleak, ominous and imposing, and is a very strong image because of all those elements. Excellent work.
We see a lot of images like this, in which the photographer is looking up through trees towards the canopy, however, what sets this one apart is the long exposure. It clearly demonstrates the windy conditions in which the photographer was working, but it's not overdone. There's just the right balance between sharpness and blur, and converting it to black and white is a good finishing touch.
This is a classic documentary shot, and almost looks as if it could be plucked from the pages of a Picture Post story in the 1950s. The expression on the woman's face gives away the tiring nature of her task, while composing to leave space at the top and a hint of the tracks behind her give context and atmosphere to the scene. Nicely done.
Meet the expert judge
This is simply glorious. A landscape image is supposed to convey a sense of place, and this one succeeds in spades, transporting the viewer to the edge of the lake during an autumn sunrise. The side-lighting is superb, and the hint of mist coming in from the left suggests a nip in the air. It's a subtle interpretation of the brief, and all the stronger for it.
Brief
See more contest details
**NEW RULE: The same image, and altered versions of the same image file, can only be entered into one APOY round. <a href="https://www.photocrowd.com/photo-competitions/photography-awards/apoy-2019/help/#heading-1580">Find out more</a>.** The vagaries of our climate can be frustrating, but at the same time they offer some fantastic opportunities for exciting and engaging photography. In this category, any subject goes, as long as it has weather as its dominating theme. This might mean the morning light streaming through autumn mist, someone running for the bus through the pouring rain, people snoozing on a sun-drenched beach, or a mountainscape in the snow. Be creative with how you portray the scene in front of you, perhaps using a long exposure to capture streaking raindrops or a neutral-density graduated filter to emphasise the moodiness of a stormy sky.
We love a minimal image, and this composition certainly succeeds on that front. The framing, with three 'slices' of colour, works well, as does placing the shelter towards the right of the picture. It might have been nice to experiment with a long-exposure filter, to render the sky and sea completely 'blank' and smooth, thus making the dividing lines even more prominent and sharp. But a nice, deceptively simple, shot.
