11th Photo Competition.

Crop It, or Move Closer!

It’s always difficult to set the theme for this competition. Does one aim to inspire greater efforts of photographic brilliance or keep it fairly open?

Since most of my better efforts are achieved more by luck than judgement – I usually know what I’m trying to photograph, but don’t always think about the composition – I’m a great believer in Cropping! It can change the composition and the focus of the picture wonderfully and usually for the better. You have to start with a reasonable number of pixels in the first place, or the results can be disappointing. It’s sort of the reverse of the Devil is in the detail.

Here is one not particularly inspired example. Pretty Pots in Porch has now become Milk Bottles.

So, the theme for this competition is Detail and I’d like to see some familiar house or garden objects or subjects in unusual or interesting settings, or from unfamiliar angles.

By all means post the original as well, but only the close up will be judged.

I hope this makes sense! All entries to be posted on this thread by Midnight, 4th July 2011.

PS. I’m assuming you all know how to crop a photograph, but I could be wrong, so please let me know if this is not the case.

54 thoughts on “11th Photo Competition.”

  1. Ara – I like it. So I am to be a cropper. To tell the truth I have spoiled some shots by cropping too close, just because I was irritated by some fringe objects! I will retire to the garden and let the jujces run!

  3. OFFS,,now I have to start thinking again and Ferret plus Beloved are arriving just three days later! In the meantime I have to go and hunt something down and stock up on beer and ‘nightcaps’.

    OZ

  4. Interesting challenge, Araminta! Will be crossing the Channel heading for France (Tour de) on the witching hour of deadline so I’ll make sure to get something in beforehand!

  6. OZ, dear. That’s in the future, I’ve loads of things to do before the deadline, although I don’t have to enter this competition. 🙂

  8. We’ll be somewhere up in the air between Singapore and London at midnight 4th July – but I think I might manage this one!

  9. Ah yes, Boadicea. You will be heading in this direction.

    I tried to make it relatively simple for everyone, so I hope to see your entry before you set off. 🙂

  10. I’ve posted a shot but it needs to be resized – some might say recycled! Oops! 🙂

  11. Hi Janus.

    I didn’t see your photo, so I don’t know what went wrong. If it wasn’t an HTML problem, then you probably cropped it too closely, and you didn’t have enough pixels left!

  12. Araminta

    It needed recycling – it was so out of focus it made my eyes wince!

    Hopefully, Janus will retake it ‘in focus’ and re-crop successfully!

  14. O me miserum! The full size pic is in focus but the close-up details aren’t. I’ve ordered a Brownie for all my future masterpieces.

  20. A large bowl of those, suitably purged, boiled with herbs and served with beer and a loaf of local bread, is quite a delicacy around here. Just thought I’d mention it.

    OZ

  27. O Zangado :

    A large bowl of those, suitably purged, boiled with herbs and served with beer and a loaf of local bread, is quite a delicacy around here. Just thought I’d mention it.

    OZ

    Hi OZ.

    I trust that you will not be serving this alleged delicacy to Ferret and Beloved when they visit?

    If you do, I would like to volunteer to represent them in any forthcoming action for damages.

    Ferret,, just swallow, express no approval or contractual acceptance of the offering and then contact me. It would help if you could get violently ill and then have to get stomach-pumped by incompetents.

    Near death would be a major bonus. But then, I’ve always been a dreamer.

    Money for old rope, in my opinion, We’re talking major infringement of pretty well everything possible and mega bucks in my opinion.

    Whooooo!

  28. Oh Mr Mackie, I’m convulsed with laughter.

    A photo would be nice though before you depart these shores! (Big smiley thing)


  29. JM – in view of your declared aversion to the delights of escargots (running with garlic butter), I assume that you will not be feasting on Witchetty grubs during your adventure down-under?

    Shame on you! 😦

  30. Bearsy.

    Mrs M and I have tossed the coin. I lost. She’s hugging the koala and I’m doing the Bugs.

    Fine by me. Vicious little bastards, in my opinion.

    I will do the Bugs bit. Just don’t tell me that they taste anything like chicken. I really, really hate the taste of chicken.

    It’s a long story.

  31. Witchetty grubs are great if you toast them first …. don’t forget to bite off the head with your teeth and spit it out otherwise the grub will taste a bit sour 🙂

    Bull ants are also great but again … best to remove the head … and make sure they’re dead first … they can give your tongue a nasty bite 😦

  32. Mr Mackie @ 27 and subsequent – Made my evening, that did. And they do taste of chicken. Hee hee!

    OZ


  33. This is not an entry, because I didn’t take it, but I thought that it might amuse those with a sense of humour as warped as mine.

    The competition rules spurred me to go through the electronic album of a wedding we attended last year, looking for weird happenings in the periphery – I found several, but most were of bystanders doing strange things with tight shoes or recalcitrant cameras.

    The pictures were taken by a retired professional photographer, so they are state-of-the-art extra high resolution jobbies – the camera cost about as much as a small car, I believe.

    This ducky little sign was tucked in the corner of a stunning picture of the bride, on her horse, accompanied by her bridesmaids, taken from behind.

    I wonder how fast quick children go? 😕

  34. John – OZ is winding you up! Bugs do not taste at all like chicken!

    I will own that I refused to eat ‘Bugs’ simply because I knew about Witchetty grubs – then I saw them! Have been addicted ever since!

  36. JM – Seeing as how Boadicea has dobbed me in as they say in Orstralier, please do try the Moreton Bay bugs when in Brizzie. They look like prehistoric crabs on the hoof, but are absolutely delicious and don’t actually taste anything like chicken. Treat yoiurself to a dozen oysters on a bed of ice for starters. Oh drool!

    OZ

  37. Just a reminder that you have until 4th July to post your entries. I shall be busy this weekend but would really really appreciate some new photos!

  39. A couple of people have added an entry as a separate post, so maybe we need links here so they can be found easily?

  47. I’d forgotten about Soutie. I don’t know if he intended it to be an entry, but I wil certainly count it.

    Thanks.

  48. Morning Ara, so today’s D-Day!

    This challenge was a great idea but difficult, I have perused hundreds of file pics and would you believe found nothing much suitable, it’s not that my family consists of great photographers, there are plenty of poor shots but nothing that quite fitted the requirements to my satisfaction

    I did consider this as an entry…

    It somehow appears as the centerpiece on a picture of a school outing!
    (click the sign for original)

    But after much thought and consideration I found that I couldn’t improve on my original ‘bakkie’ photo in my explanatory post! So, I’d like the bakkie pic to be considered as my entry.

    Here it is again.

    Here’s my post with the original photo for ease of reference.

  52. Thank you, Soutie, LW and Bravo for the entries. I will have a look at them all soonest, and announce the winner later this evening or tomorrow.

    Sorry for the delay, I haven’t had much time to sit down at my desk for a few days.

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