Judges Comments

Sometimes a moment tops technical or compositional qualities. The 1st place photo evokes a strong emotional reaction with the viewer and is a very sad yet strong moment. However there are some distracting factors with the framing; a floating head on the far right side of the frame, the woman's back in the black jacket distracts from the center focal point. There is a lot to see and read emotionally on peoples faces in this photo and this is why we still chose it as 1st place. 2nd place is a strong composition. It is a interesting subject matter and makes us want to know more about the story. 3rd place is a wonderful slice of these peoples life with the normality of a child eating a snack juxtaposed with the desperation to find a missing loved one. However the photo lacks a strong composition and ordering of elements in the frame.