Judges Comments

This one was the best for me because it struck me as a bit more imaginative with the use of the fireworks.

Judges Comments

The photographer did a fantastic job from beginning to end with staging, placement and lighting. Great fun!

Judges Comments

Fun and unusual take on a wedding portrait. The uncomfortable expressions on the faces of the women lined up is a cute contrast to the bride and groom ready to go.

Great setting of a scene to tell a story that is, I am guessing, very specific to this couple. I would have thought about shooting it with a telephotos to make it more like the sports/news photos that it is playing on as well as having much less bright sky.

Judges Comments

Playful frames within frames within frames with their own stories playing out.

Judges Comments

The silhouettes of the secondary players contrasts nicely with the well lighted bride and groom.

Judges Comments

I really like the location the photographer chose to make this image. The bridal party of bridesmaids looks as comfortable in this setting as a woodland fairy. That ethereal landscape would feel at home in any Disney fantasy-scape. Good composition weighed just the right amount of forest without loss of facial detail.

Judges Comments

This is a refreshing scene in a world bursting with digital photography gimmicks. Nothing can replace the foundation of basic portraiture. This is a wonderful example of doing it right by doing it simple. It's easy to become lost within lens angle, lighting and composition as we try harder and harder to create something new. Basic, traditional photography is the standard for which all is measured and this photographer chose the right approach, the right location and the right lighting.

Judges Comments

Nice use of the silhouette and the body language of the bride and the group at the left. Great timing as well to get the hands and gestures right. I do wonder about using a telephoto rather than wide angle so the background does not look like it is falling over and the deep blue at the far left is minimized or eliminated.

Judges Comments

I've seen numerous variations on this theme - images shot from across a street or hotel lobby of a members of the wedding party posed on different floors. But I haven't seen one I liked as much as this one. I think it's because the image was made without a sense of "overkill" or pretentiousness. The photographer has presented it to us in a matter-of-fact way by allowing his subjects to basically choose their own action. As such, it strikes a note of veracity not often seen in posed group images.

Judges Comments

A great setting with lots of things happening that feels like an un-staged moment.