Thanks to our judge, Gail Stent.
| C GRADE | |||
| Under the sea | Monita Baird | A great abstract with amazing light and colour. You have captured this well and gone to a lot of effort to create something unusual. The detail in the shapes is lovely. | Honours |
| The Gateway | Hayden McCoy | Such stunning detail in the iris, showing an amazing structure that one does not normally see. I enjoy the choice of a black background, making the golden colour stand out. | Honours |
| Cicada Shell | Dave Hart | It always amazes me that a cicada can leave its shell stuck to a tree. The sharpness of your image allows us to see the detail of hairs and the shell in depth. Your choice of composition, with the cicada on the left third, allows interesting negative space and blur on the right. | Accepted |
| Loosing Your Marbles | Monita Baird | This is very well done showing reflections and water adhesion on the bottom of the marble. Your choice of aperture is wonderful, creating depth in the image with the suggestion of more marbles in the background. Well done, a great composition and well constructed shot. | Honours |
| Cacti | Lovely to see the closeup of the cactus flower, but I feel the crop doesn’t suit the subject matter. By cropping off the top third of the image you would bring more focus down to the pink parts and avoid the eye wandering about the image. | No award | |
| Taraxacum | Kath Cosgrove | This is such a beautifully sharp and clear image which is emphasised by the plain green background. The detail in the head and seed attachments is beautiful. | Honours |
| Gentian | The colours in the image are quite stunning, but I feel that the bright backlighting is causing detail loss around the centre. The focus is soft – perhaps intentionally to create a more arty image – but by having the centre of the Gentian in focus and a bit lighter, would draw the eye to this point rather than the white behind. | No award | |
| After the Rain | Linda Ritchie | A very simple subject, but well taken with sharp detail showing the water droplets, the leaf veins and edges. The composition is interesting and I also enjoy the bokeh in the background. | Honours |
| Grasshopper Wannabe | Hayden McCoy | A lovely natural image with a beautiful blur of negative space on the right. Compositionally I enjoy the image, but it is a pity the insect isn’t facing us. Lovely detail of the wings and abdomen though. | Accepted |
| Bee On Lavender | Dave Hart | The shot has been taken below the bee, looking up into the eyes, which makes a great view point. The bee is sharp with lovely detail in the face and hairs. It’s a pity it’s been taken in full sunlight as there is quite harsh light on the bee. | Accepted |
| Enjoying Natures Nectar | Linda Ritchie | Getting in close has allowed you to show a lot of detail in the bee. The light hitting the thorax area creates a beautiful golden glow, but it’s a pity that the face is so shaded. | Accepted |
| B GRADE | |||
| Willow Aphids | Such strange and alien creatures! I enjoy how you have capture the mass of the group, but compositionally I find my eyes jumping between the top lighter colour insects to the three larger ones below the centre. A possible solution could be to crop off the top so that the focus is on the lower half of the image. | No award | |
| 6 inch Clamp | It’s always interesting to photograph tools and I enjoy the lines and angles you have in this image. However, I feel that the focus is not in the correct place. You are focused on the left and right of the tool, but for me the interest lies in the centre where the silver leans towards the red part. | No award | |
| Rhododendron flower | Brian Edmunds | The black background certainly accentuates the colours and lightness of the flowers and you have obtained a good sharpness overall with the smaller details of stamens and water drops clearly visible. | Accepted |
| White Fungi | Arthur Linnell | The circular shape of the fungi within the square crop of the image is a good composition, showing only what is needed in the image. There is quite a bit of dirt on the fungi which is often a good idea to remove before taking the shot. You’ve exposed it well and there is good detail and sharpness in the subject. | Accepted |
| Sunflower bud | Jenny Leadbetter | It’s a lovely time to photograph a flower when it’s in bud formation, and the close view of it shows detail we wouldn’t normally notice. The bud is lovely and sharp, but I think you should crop a bit more on the left so that the bud is centred. A bit of toning down on the background would also allow the bud to pop more in the image. | Accepted |
| Cactus | You have gone in really close to show the centre of the cactus and the detail of the hairs on the edges is really sharp in the foreground. I feel that if you had shot this in the shade you wouldn’t have such harsh lighting – remember that you can always shade your subject when doing macro work. | No award | |
| Working of Grandpa’s pocket watch | Old style watches are always so interesting to see and coming in close you can see the cogs and wheels so well. I feel that you have cropped it a bit too tight on the sides, cutting off the watch edges and also I feel your focus is a bit off. If you had shot more directly from overhead, it may have been better. | No award | |
| Tulip | Rose Kerin | The bright reds contrasting with the dark green of the background really make this tulip stand out well. There is lovely detail in the petals with vibrant colour. A slight crop of the left will even out the composition to create symmetry in the image. | Accepted |
| Fly | Peter Wright | This fly image is really a close macro shot of the face. The details of the eyes and face of the fly are quite striking and sharp. The only colour in the image is the fly itself, and the centred composition draws the viewer in completely. | Honours |
| Whitebait for Tea | The focus is very shallow in this image with only the centre eye in focus, drawing you to this part of the image. You could even crop off the left and bottom on the image to accentuate this focus. Have you tried this in monochrome? It could make a good b&w image. | No award | |
| Bee | Peter Wright | You really have come in close with this bee. There is so much detail in the hairs and eye. I enjoy how you have cropped out unnecessary detail creating a panorama type image. The lighting you have used is a little bright, causing reflective bright spots on some body parts. | Accepted |
| Daisy | Cliff Boddy | This is a gorgeous macro shot of the daisy centre and the square crop really emphasises what your subject is. The sharpness and detail is lovely and I find myself seeing interesting parts in amongst the stamens. | Honours |
| Grey Duck | Such a gorgeous shot of the duck with amazing reflections and background colours and light. I don’t feel that this is a macro or closeup shot so I’ll pass it so that you can enter this in another competition to get the results it deserves. | No award | |
| Adjustable Spanner Mechanism | Cliff Boddy | Another interesting view of part of a tool. You have looked at an ordinary object and created a piece of art by getting in close. I feel that cropping in on the left to make both sides even would be a better composition. | Accepted |
| A GRADE | |||
| Widow Skimmer Dragonfly | Allan McGregor | You have really captured a stunning shot of this dragonfly showing sharp details of the insect. The subject is separated beautifully from the background which gives depth to the image. Due to the diagonal live of the subject, I feel that the balance of the image could be improved by cropping slightly off the left. | Honours |
| Rest for a moment | Sarah Perrins | This is a beautiful image, sharp and well presented. However, I feel that it’s more of a closeup image with a lot of black negative space.and if you had filled the frame with the flower and Monarch, the image would have far more impact. | Accepted |
| Field Daisy | This is a lovely subject with the yellow and while of the daisy against the dark background. You have come in close and have a good depth of field showing the detail and have shot the daisy on an interesting angle. I also enjoy the soft bokeh in the background mirroring the colours, however, I find the flower feels a bit flat and lacks contrast. | No award | |
| Little Shop of Horrors -Clematis Bud | You have chosen a good depth of field with a blurred background, allowing the bud to stand out clearly with sharp detail of the hairs and texture. There appears to be strange white shapes at the top of the bud which I don’t understand and find it distracting from the overall image. I would also suggest a change of title if you use this image again. | No award | |
| European paper wasp nest | Sandra McCoy | The yellow and orange of the image stands out well against the dark background and the image has good composition overall. It’s lovely and sharp with the wasps drawing the attention to the top right of the nest. | Accepted |
| Boyle River Mushroom | Allan McGregor | A beautiful mushroom with gorgeous lighting coming through the back of it as well as being well lit underneath to clearly show the gills under the cap. It stands out well against the dark background in a very simple composition. | Accepted |
| Mycena sp. | Eunice Belk | You have composed this image very well with a good depth of field showing enough of the mushrooms in sharp detail, blurring off into the background to show depth in the image. I enjoy the crop and the interest created by the centre couple being squashed between the others. | Accepted |
| Mornings March: Dew-kissed Rosebud | You have certainly gone in close to capture the aphids on this rosebud. The dew adds a lot of interest to the image as well. I do find that only a couple of the aphids are in focus, so a smaller aperture may have done the trick to get more in focus and still given you the wonderful blurred background. The colours of the rose are beautiful with the contrast of the greens and magentas and I enjoy the horizontal subject line leading up to the right.. | No award | |
| Trapped in a Bubble | The square crop of the image and the leading lines of the leaves allows the eye to be drawn directly in to the centre of the image. Because of your title I am trying to work out what is trapped in the water rather than appreciating the bubble of water itself and the overall image, which is much clearer and shaper than the object trapped. | No award | |
| Gems of the Forest: Hidden among the Bark | Marilyn Holgate | What a gorgeous shot of these Mycena. I love the curves you have seen in the stems where they are competing for space. The blurred back and foreground creates a beautiful subject separation, yet still allows us to know the forest setting. And the light on the caps is soft and natural. | Honours |
| Magnolia flower | Karina Templeton | You have come in so close to show us the very interesting centre of the flowers before the stamens have fully emerged. The textures and shapes are sharp and interesting emphasising the detail, but I feel the part in focus is a bit flat in tonality. The backlit petals behind are brighter, drawing the eye. | Accepted |
| Robber Fly | This is a beautifully sharp and detailed image of the robber fly and I enjoy the diagonal running through the image. However, I don’t understand why you have tried to desaturate it. The feet and the end of the abdomen are still in colour, as is the rest of the image so I feel that the desaturation is not necessary. My opinion is that the image would look so much more macro if you had just cropped it in a bit more, eliminating the negative space around it, and shown us the beauty of the detail you have captured. | No award | |
| Agapanthus flower | Karina Templeton | The stage of opening of the Agapanthus is so interesting, showing us how the bud emerges into a flower. The water droplets add so much interest and the square crop creates a perfect frame for the composition. Beautifully sharp in all the right places, with a lovely blur in the background. | Honours |
| Torpedo Bug | Colleen Linnell | You have captured this beautifully! He is so gorgeous and green with such a neutral background. Super sharp and a beautiful composition. | Honours |
| Vibrant Zinnia in Full Bloom | Amy Boyce | Your background autumn colours and bokeh create such a perfect setting for the bright pink of the Zinnia. There is sharp detail in the flower and I enjoy the composition and how you have a portrait format to accentuate the vertical line of the stem. | Honours |
| Eye see you | Great title to the image and the macro of the eye really shows the incredible detail and colours of the iris. However, I find the reflections in the eye and the inclusion of the eyelid and skin takes away from the beauty of the iris itself. | No award | |
| Little blue Gem | Amy Boyce | A rare find to see and photograph this werewere-kōkako. Lovely to see it in its natural habitat and you have enough depth of field to show the cap and stem both in focus. I do find that the far background is a bit too busy and detailed, so a smaller aperture may have blurred this more. A good capture and I love the water drop hanging on the edge, just about to drop off. | Accepted |
| Thirsty Bee | Rosie Coster | This is a sharp and detailed image of the bee and I enjoy the contrast of the bee textures and colour against that of the background. You have captured lovely light in the image as well. | Accepted |
| Oleander Aphids | Colleen Linnell | These are like beings from another planet and that is why macro images are so special. The vertical aspect and diagonal line through the image is very dynamic and your colours stand out well. I do find that I am unsure which aphid to look at as there doesn’t seem to be one more dominant than others. | Accepted |
| Brown Setwing (Dythemis sterilis) | Robyn Carter | A difficult shot to get, yet you have captured it to show us the sharp detail of the insect, great light and lovely background bokeh to show it off at its best. | Accepted |
| Inside Tulip | Robyn Young | So sharp and detailed with gorgeous colour and background blur. I love the textures you have captured as well as enough light into the cup of the Tulip to show us detail there too. | Accepted |
| Yelly Fish | Cathy Price | Beautiful soft light and colours against the black background draw the eye to the subject. I enjoy the angle of the jellyfish and the fine filaments floating in the water. This is more of a closeup of the jellyfish rather than macro. (Watch the spelling of the title) | Accepted |
| Orchid | I enjoy the colours and vibrancy of the orchid with the water drops for added interest. However I find the background colour very strong and distracting and possibly you could tone it down a bit to allow the flower to be more dominant. | No award | |
| Red Eyed Tree Frog (Agalychnis callidryas) | Robyn Carter | A great dynamic diagonal running through this image, as well as the lovely light creating the vibrant green against the black background. Capturing the frog with the nictitating membrane partly over its eye creates interest in the subject. A gorgeous image! | Honours |
| Katydid | Robyn Young | Such a gorgeous photo of the Katydid walking over the vegetation. The light has brought out the colour and detail against the dark background. Your depth of field is well chosen, showing detail on the head and fore limbs. | Honours |
| Buzz pollination | Sue Titmuss | A lovely warm photo of the bumble bee showing such detail in the hairs and grains of pollen. You’ve chosen a good flower to photograph as its landing pad, with the yellows flowing through out the image. | Honours |
| house fly | Sarah Perrins | It is always good to see a macro shot of a fly’s eyes and the detail of the face – you have captured this well. I feel that if you had a slightly deeper depth of field, the legs and a bit of the abdomen could have been included in the focus area. But it’s a great composition and I enjoy how you have come down to the fly’s eye level to take the shot. | Accepted |
| Taraxacum | Kath Cosgrove | Best C Grade | |
| Fly | Peter Wright | Best B Grade | |
| Torpedo Bug | Colleen Linnell | Best A Grade / Champion |