COMPETITION 3 - REFLECTIONS
24th November 2025
Each year members vote for the subject of the one themed competition of the year and this was the week when we saw the results. Our judge was Dave Hollingsworth, a friend of long standing. His comments are above all fair and consistent and he gives time to everyone’s work. He pointed out areas for improvement, but was at pains to say that these were minor because we had produced great photos, well presented.
He made some points we have not heard before, explaining that on his first run through he marks based on content, execution and overall quality. Where he awarded 16, he said what he liked and what he felt could be improved. In some cases, he felt these shots could do much better with just a little work.
He held back more than most judges, but remarked that his second pass was where he looks for the things which differentiate a great competition shot from a great shot for the living room wall. Every aspect must be considered. To help us with preparing our submissions, he suggested making a duplicate of the candidate images before the final edits and then deciding what makes the image stronger and then which, from the short list, works best.
He was keen that we should study the edges of our shots and eliminate ‘bits and bright things’. He pointed out water splashes, windows, bright rocks, lights and other bright objects. Occasionally he made an argument for cropping quite severely to give a more focussed image which took the eye to the main subject and left fewer other elements which added nothing. As another judge once said, ‘If it doesn’t add to the picture, it detracts’.
The colour prints were judged first, with 5 of the 13 held back. We were soon down to four which gave Dave more pause for thought. Andy Stephenson took two of the joint second places with a glorious shot of two costumed riders on horses walking in the sea and an atmospheric evening shot of Knaresborough showing it full of activity.
Lee Dalgleish was also joint second with a slice of lemon splashing into a glass of water. This would probably be classed as still life, which, as Dave said, gives you all the time in the world to set up your lighting, background, focus etc, except that capturing the splash required a high-speed shot.
The winner of this class was Tom Coulson with a little dog with soulful eyes lying on a reflective surface. This was commended for its tones, the spot on reflection and the sharpness of the face. Tom later said this was a phone camera shot (the camera he had with him), proving it can be done.
In the monochrome class half of the 14 entries were held back and Dave needed his competition criteria to reduce them, saying this was not a criticism as they were all very, very good.
Joyce Bell’s two entries were joint second. In her much-praised square format of reflections in flood water, Dave loved the tones, the detail and how well seen this shot was. Her second shot of two cyclists crossing a wet surface was highly commended for great reflections and lack of distractions. Only a very slight under exposure in some areas kept it from the top spot, which was taken by Andy Stephenson. His shot taken abroad featured a small child bending to drink from a puddle – much to his parents’ horror according to Andy! Dave loved how the light hit the child’s back and hair, the tones and – another of his favourite points – that it had been taken from low down on the child’s eye level.
Dave rose to the challenge of 35 digital images, limiting himself to 13 held back. The quality was obvious as there were five 19s in joint second place. Peter Joyce had captured a male mandarin duck on water and Robert Neal had a lovely shot of a great tit with wings partially open at a rocky pool. Alan Burkwood’s ‘The Nightwatchman’ from a costumed event was praised for the symmetry, the quality of the reflection, the lighting and the detail. Andy Stephenson completed his best competition this year with a fallow buck drinking. This was commended for the timing and the excellent reflection. Finally, Joyce Bell’s reflection in her bicycle mirror was praised for the detail, the colourful effect and the creativity of the idea. It also scored 19.
Against such stiff competition it needed something special to win, and unsurprisingly it was Lee Dalgleish who produced it. His image was of a sharp reflection of what could have been an array of differently coloured crayons in a water drop on a crayon. The reflection was pin sharp and the straight lines of the out of focus background were bent by the optics of the droplet. A well-deserved winner.
Next week we look forward to the return of Chris Upton with ‘The Way I See It’.
Full details of the club and programme are on the: http://www.retford-photographic.co.uk/
Meetings are weekly on Mondays at 7.30pm in St Joseph’s Hall, Babworth Road. We have a from our mid-season break from December 9th, resuming on January 5th then, continuing until the end of April 2026.
He made some points we have not heard before, explaining that on his first run through he marks based on content, execution and overall quality. Where he awarded 16, he said what he liked and what he felt could be improved. In some cases, he felt these shots could do much better with just a little work.
He held back more than most judges, but remarked that his second pass was where he looks for the things which differentiate a great competition shot from a great shot for the living room wall. Every aspect must be considered. To help us with preparing our submissions, he suggested making a duplicate of the candidate images before the final edits and then deciding what makes the image stronger and then which, from the short list, works best.
He was keen that we should study the edges of our shots and eliminate ‘bits and bright things’. He pointed out water splashes, windows, bright rocks, lights and other bright objects. Occasionally he made an argument for cropping quite severely to give a more focussed image which took the eye to the main subject and left fewer other elements which added nothing. As another judge once said, ‘If it doesn’t add to the picture, it detracts’.
The colour prints were judged first, with 5 of the 13 held back. We were soon down to four which gave Dave more pause for thought. Andy Stephenson took two of the joint second places with a glorious shot of two costumed riders on horses walking in the sea and an atmospheric evening shot of Knaresborough showing it full of activity.
Lee Dalgleish was also joint second with a slice of lemon splashing into a glass of water. This would probably be classed as still life, which, as Dave said, gives you all the time in the world to set up your lighting, background, focus etc, except that capturing the splash required a high-speed shot.
The winner of this class was Tom Coulson with a little dog with soulful eyes lying on a reflective surface. This was commended for its tones, the spot on reflection and the sharpness of the face. Tom later said this was a phone camera shot (the camera he had with him), proving it can be done.
In the monochrome class half of the 14 entries were held back and Dave needed his competition criteria to reduce them, saying this was not a criticism as they were all very, very good.
Joyce Bell’s two entries were joint second. In her much-praised square format of reflections in flood water, Dave loved the tones, the detail and how well seen this shot was. Her second shot of two cyclists crossing a wet surface was highly commended for great reflections and lack of distractions. Only a very slight under exposure in some areas kept it from the top spot, which was taken by Andy Stephenson. His shot taken abroad featured a small child bending to drink from a puddle – much to his parents’ horror according to Andy! Dave loved how the light hit the child’s back and hair, the tones and – another of his favourite points – that it had been taken from low down on the child’s eye level.
Dave rose to the challenge of 35 digital images, limiting himself to 13 held back. The quality was obvious as there were five 19s in joint second place. Peter Joyce had captured a male mandarin duck on water and Robert Neal had a lovely shot of a great tit with wings partially open at a rocky pool. Alan Burkwood’s ‘The Nightwatchman’ from a costumed event was praised for the symmetry, the quality of the reflection, the lighting and the detail. Andy Stephenson completed his best competition this year with a fallow buck drinking. This was commended for the timing and the excellent reflection. Finally, Joyce Bell’s reflection in her bicycle mirror was praised for the detail, the colourful effect and the creativity of the idea. It also scored 19.
Against such stiff competition it needed something special to win, and unsurprisingly it was Lee Dalgleish who produced it. His image was of a sharp reflection of what could have been an array of differently coloured crayons in a water drop on a crayon. The reflection was pin sharp and the straight lines of the out of focus background were bent by the optics of the droplet. A well-deserved winner.
Next week we look forward to the return of Chris Upton with ‘The Way I See It’.
Full details of the club and programme are on the: http://www.retford-photographic.co.uk/
Meetings are weekly on Mondays at 7.30pm in St Joseph’s Hall, Babworth Road. We have a from our mid-season break from December 9th, resuming on January 5th then, continuing until the end of April 2026.