This summer edition of Photo of the Month was judged by Fred Lum, of the Globe and Mail.
FEATURE
1. FEAsumAPR2
BATHURST, N.B. (24/06/17) - Dennis Lavigne grabs and sorts lobsters in the traps as fast as he can. Lavigne, works on a rented boat with the Peter-Paul family who started lobster fishing five years ago when the market was down. Photo: Andrew Ryan
2. FEAsumAPR1
3. FEAsumAPR3
BATHURST, N.B. (24/06/17) - Dennis Lavigne looks through one of the Peter-Paul family's 300 lobster traps on the Bay of Chaleur. Photo: Andrew Ryan
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First - Like placement of elements in this composition. Eye moves from right to left following lobster fisherman -> trap -> ocean. Is he pulling lobsters or about to throw back undersized or by catch. I wonder if going bit wider would put the viewer in the mind space of being out on a vast ocean = feeling small in the world. A bit of selective post processing would emphasize the main elements in the photo (ie- the centre with the lobster and fisherman’s face)
Second - Interesting point of view. Good to get inside for a passenger’s look at drifting. Looking at the idea of drifting, I’m wondering again if a slower shutter would have better imparted the feel of drifting. Maybe the steering wheel being turned ? Getting inside the car was a good idea nonetheless.
Third - Really like the contrast between the yellow trap and the murky blue sky and boat deck. A working lobster boat deck can be a crazy place to work but possibly a lower angle might have been worth trying, possibly with some movement, if the photographer didn’t try that. There’s being economical on assignments, but there’s also leaving the safe shot to try another angle because theres nothing worse than looking at the edit later and thinking they should have grabbed a few more photos.
1. NEWsumAPR2
Valerie Laforest, 12 right, and Mahée Arsenaux, 9 left, use their noise makers during the Acadian day Tintamarre. The Tintamarre is marked by Acadian making as much noise as possible by hitting pots and pans a tradition meant to remind the British settlers of their existence. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
2. NEWaugAI2
TORONTO, Ont. (20/06/17) — George McIntyre stands in front of the crowd of attendees at the Toronto Candlelight AIDS Vigil at Barbara Hall Park in Toronto's Church Wellesley Village on Jun. 20, 2017. A few hundred people gathered at the park for a candle light vigil in memory of those lost to AIDS.
3.NEWsumAPR1
École secondaire Nepisiguit graduate Bruno Haché opens the door for Kassandra Duguay on prom night in Bathurst. It's not uncommon for high school graduates to show up to prom in outlandish vehicles--from tractor trailers to hot-rods. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
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École secondaire Nepisiguit graduate Bruno Haché opens the door for Kassandra Duguay on prom night in Bathurst. It's not uncommon for high school graduates to show up to prom in outlandish vehicles--from tractor trailers to hot-rods. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
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First place - Showed good composition and placement of elements within the frame. I like all the different lines running throughout the photo. Bit of a nit, but cropping out the small white triangle at bottom left and red bit at top would remove very slightly distracting objects. There are times to leave frames a bit messy but this is not one.
Second - Nice moment with backlight and out of focus rain on the lens echo the shape of the umbrellas and strong lights. I’d like to have seen the photographer take a risk and slow the shutter down more so the rain comes down in longer streaks.
Third - It’s odd that we don’t see the entire vehicle since that’s the premise of the prom night but the expression of the girl in the car leaves me wondering what she’s thinking and makes this photo work. The hand reaching creates some anticipation. Are these two prom dates and he’s going to be a gentleman and open the door for her ?
Third - It’s odd that we don’t see the entire vehicle since that’s the premise of the prom night but the expression of the girl in the car leaves me wondering what she’s thinking and makes this photo work. The hand reaching creates some anticipation. Are these two prom dates and he’s going to be a gentleman and open the door for her ?
SPORTS
1. SPTsumAPR1
Cjay Good, 6, argues with teammate Justin Ward, 7, at the season opener of the Chaleur Soccer Club under 8 league. Cjay's Parents are Stephanie and Craig Good from Beresford. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
2. SPTsumAPR2
1. SPTsumAPR1
Cjay Good, 6, argues with teammate Justin Ward, 7, at the season opener of the Chaleur Soccer Club under 8 league. Cjay's Parents are Stephanie and Craig Good from Beresford. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
2. SPTsumAPR2
BATHURST, N.B. (08/07/17) - Bathurst Red Sox pitch during sunset at the city's baseball diamond. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
3. SPTSeptWal1
KINGSTON Ont. (16/09/2017) Jake Hollet (racer #42) passes his competitors in the Modified Lawn Mower Race at the Kingston Fair and places first. He's a resident of Kingston, 21 years old and has been competing in races for 6 years.
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PORTRAIT
1. PRTAugAI1
MONTREAL, Qc. (26/05/17) — Singer-songwriter Lou Laurence plays a guitar while posing for a portrait in Montreal's Mile End.
2.PRTsumAPR3
No Entries.
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Points
KINGSTON Ont. (16/09/2017) Jake Hollet (racer #42) passes his competitors in the Modified Lawn Mower Race at the Kingston Fair and places first. He's a resident of Kingston, 21 years old and has been competing in races for 6 years.*******
Straight up, this was a very weak category image wise and entry wise. Only 3 ?
First - The hand coming from right totally makes this photo since it echoes the children’s gestures. Love the expression on the one kid who appears to be debating or arguing something. Good eye getting all the elements together at the right moment. Having said that...Cropping.Command Z is your friend. The swing and person at left should have been cropped out. It adds nothing to the photo and is distracting and photographer should have caught this. Losing those elements would have made a much stronger photo. So again, try a crop and if it doesn’t work…Command Z ;)
Second - This was the golden hour and that light is great. Some judicious post processing (marquee, feather and levels/ curves) would focus the eyes back to the pitcher at centre left at. Find the key part of the photo and try to emphasize that. It’s dark and loses attention to the right side which is brighter, but nothing is going on there. I understand people are very spooked about how far to post process but this is when you ask other students or faculty about the lines that can’t be crossed.
Third - The subject is in focus. The composition leaves much to be desired however. Photo feels awkward since the subject is leaving the frame with empty space to the left. While I’m not always big on rules, action should be moving TOWARDS something in the frame, not exiting. Perhaps showing a wider view including other lawn mower racers would have brought more to the photo vs tight shot of one competitor.
PORTRAIT
1. PRTAugAI1
MONTREAL, Qc. (26/05/17) — Singer-songwriter Lou Laurence plays a guitar while posing for a portrait in Montreal's Mile End.2.PRTsumAPR3
Justy Molinares hangs in her anti-gravity yoga hammock at Studio Aero X in downtown Bathurst. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
3. PRTsumAPR1
BATHURST, N.B. (24/06/17) - Claude Boucher poses for a portrait while fishing for flat fish. Boucher fishes regularly on Youghall beach in Bathurst. Photo: Andrew Ryan/The Northern Light
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MULTIPIX
First - Good portrait and not the usual static posed photo. Once again, cropping rears its ugly head. That sliver of wall on the left should have been cleaved off. It’s distracting and tries to draw attention away from the singer. Some slight post processing to even out the photograph would add some balance for me. I really appreciate that the subject doesn’t claim the entire frame and that this is a very enviro portrait showing something about the subject. Very well done.
Second - Haha. Good expression and a unique positioning of the subject. The hanging fabric gives us an important clue as to why the subject is upside down. A bit of curves/ levels on the face would draw the viewer to the subject but that’s not major. Good job looking for something different.
Third - Clean portrait, nothing distracting. Would it have been better tighter ? Not sure. Good job to make sure the subject’s face doesn’t get lost with the hood pulled up. Good tones overall.
MULTIPIX
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One.single. entry.
Strangely, only one photo in a Multi Pic category. Don’t know if it was a mistake/ tech error uploading or not but it’s disheartening to see this category with such poor representation. Multi pics are where a photographer can show how they see and process stories and if they can break it down into individual parcels to form something whole.
Points
Andrew Ryan +525
Andrej Ivanov +150
Amy Walton +25
Andrej Ivanov +150
Amy Walton +25
Points
Points are awarded for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and Honourable Mentions.
1st place - 100
2nd place - 50
3d place - 25
HM - 10
