National – July 2017 – Portrait/Illustration

Judges Comments

We came away with a sense that some of the portraits in this category were collaborations between photographer and subject, and others were just images grabbed from other assignments, such as community events. That didn't necessarily mean a photo would be tossed, but it was a factor. The 1st place photo shows us the artist with his work and does it exceptionally well. We especially like the composition and the difference in color tones between the subject and his work. The 2nd place photo is gorgeous, lively and the contrast of the mime's white vs. the red umbrella makes this photo really stand out. It makes us want to know about this young lady. The 3rd place photo was simple, pleasing and had a true Norman Rockwell feel to it. It's perfectly framed, the rooster is perfectly positioned and while we see lots of county fair photos, this one just had a great feel to it. The alternate photo, of a drag queen, was lively and the props were great, but this photo really needed to be cropped.The green at far right and the puppets on the left were a bit distracting.

Judges: John Harte/Bakersfield College, Alex Horvath/New York Newsday