First place: First place was heavily debated in this category. This image rose to the top for several reasons. Overall, the lighting, color toning, posing, camera-to-subject distance, and camera angle were all what helped place this in first. We appreciate the soft smiles on the individuals and the overall comfort they seem to have with the photographer. Catchlights in the eyes are good and just enough in the shadow side of each person to make it work. We recommend straightening this image to make it even stronger. Great image for a great story. Portraiture is clearly a dance between the photographer and the subject(s). Here you can see everyone was working together.
Second place: The more we kept looking at your image, the more we couldn’t look away. Well done. The tone of this environmental portrait matches the seriousness of the story. Small purposeful details, like having your subject look to the light, and the painting facing opposite, helped make this so visually striking. 17mm might not be my first choice for a portrait, as distortion will be evident, but keeping your subject center frame purposefully keeps their body from bending. Nice toning. Great light on the face.
Third place: Great example of predominantly dark with light areas for emphasis. The light on the hands, face and feet are just enough to keep this portrait in the mix. While this felt dark for one judge who’s computer wasn’t pulling the shadows up, two other judges noticed clear separation of the subject’s clothing and the dark background. Good balance.
Honorable Mention: We give an honorable mention to the Americana photograph, which dealt with dark light well and had nice pops of ambient color. The only thing that could be improved is ensuring the highlights on the face hit the subject in a flattering position. Keep it up! Your image is strong!
Honorable Mention: We give another honorable mention to the Author photograph. This image is compositionally very sound. It has nice lighting and the crop is in the right place. We appreciated the positioning of your subject as well. Compared to some others, we wondered if this fit the story as much as it could have. It’s still a wonderful portrait and one worth mentioning with honor!
Category Notes: Consider how a portrait can give clues to the inner person while photographing. These images tend to be stronger in a photojournalism sense and create more dynamic imagery.
Judges:
Kriston Jae Bethel/Freelance, Sarah Landwehr/Professor, Temple University, Steven M. Falk/Freelance
Judges Comments
First place: First place was heavily debated in this category. This image rose to the top for several reasons. Overall, the lighting, color toning, posing, camera-to-subject distance, and camera angle were all what helped place this in first. We appreciate the soft smiles on the individuals and the overall comfort they seem to have with the photographer. Catchlights in the eyes are good and just enough in the shadow side of each person to make it work. We recommend straightening this image to make it even stronger. Great image for a great story. Portraiture is clearly a dance between the photographer and the subject(s). Here you can see everyone was working together. Second place: The more we kept looking at your image, the more we couldn’t look away. Well done. The tone of this environmental portrait matches the seriousness of the story. Small purposeful details, like having your subject look to the light, and the painting facing opposite, helped make this so visually striking. 17mm might not be my first choice for a portrait, as distortion will be evident, but keeping your subject center frame purposefully keeps their body from bending. Nice toning. Great light on the face. Third place: Great example of predominantly dark with light areas for emphasis. The light on the hands, face and feet are just enough to keep this portrait in the mix. While this felt dark for one judge who’s computer wasn’t pulling the shadows up, two other judges noticed clear separation of the subject’s clothing and the dark background. Good balance. Honorable Mention: We give an honorable mention to the Americana photograph, which dealt with dark light well and had nice pops of ambient color. The only thing that could be improved is ensuring the highlights on the face hit the subject in a flattering position. Keep it up! Your image is strong! Honorable Mention: We give another honorable mention to the Author photograph. This image is compositionally very sound. It has nice lighting and the crop is in the right place. We appreciated the positioning of your subject as well. Compared to some others, we wondered if this fit the story as much as it could have. It’s still a wonderful portrait and one worth mentioning with honor! Category Notes: Consider how a portrait can give clues to the inner person while photographing. These images tend to be stronger in a photojournalism sense and create more dynamic imagery.