Photoblog Challenges : Results #16

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are  Xerraire for Best of 48 (18 Nov – 24 Nov) and Ruimnm for Theme 48 : Begins with “I” or “J”. Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”. Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 48 (18 Nov – 24 Nov): I picked Droddel for a clear cold capture, Mittened Hands because I love the message and the title, Remus for a very controlled black and white with a nice play on the shadows and Shaker for a gorgeous light and sky.

• For Theme 48 – Begins with “I” or “J”: I loved Ruimnm and his jars and “Incas” from Larans (that was by the way a deserved spotlight on Aminus) and am glad they won. For this challenge I had only one pick and did hesitate a long time between Frances and her inquisitive giraffe and Locozoom. I ended up picking Locozoom for his great picture. It was his first submission and I would like to see more.

My pick of the week is Xerraire for her very intimate picture of a gorilla. I love how he seems lost in his thoughts and intelligent. It is in my opinion a great portrait.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #15

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Spectrum for Best of 47 (11 Nov – 17 Nov), Shaker for Theme 47 : Rainy and Pictografio for Technique 23 : HDR.Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”. Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 47 (11 Nov – 17 Nov): This week I picked Pictografio with the polish aviation museum. I think it’s a nice architectural shot and being of polish ascent  it spoke to me too. I also picked Rue Du Lavoir for taking us in a factory without anybody. It has a quiet feel to it, almost abandoned. I finally picked up Weib for a very expressive cow with a nice processing.

• For Theme 47 – Rainy:  I’m glad that Shaker, Boxman and Mittened Hands are the 3 big winners this week as they each have a different approach to the theme. I picked Deja for a great action shot, Ellebelle  for the sharp droplets and Xerraire for risking her life in this downpour and still getting a nice shot.

• For Technique 23 – HDR: I do believe that HDR is a big divide in photography. You have those that can’t live without it and those that wouldn’t even consider it.  For me HDR has it’s ups and downs but most importantly it needs to be subtile. That’s the reason why I picked Frances and Shaker. They bring wide range of colors and details.

My pick of the week is Deja for Theme 47 – Rainy. I can really visualize what the experience must have been with the bikes roaring in the mud. This shot takes me in the middle of the action and without the rain it would be a completely different shot.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #14

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Ruimnm for Best of 46 (04 Nov – 10 Nov) and Shaker for Theme 46 : Birds.Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”. Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 46 (04 Nov – 10 Nov): Loved the creative shot from Ruimnm and the calm beauty from Wanderungen. I picked Harmonie for her dizzying optical illusion, Pictografio for great textures and colors in these details and Twiggy for once more a wonderful light.

• For Theme 46 – Birds:  I love the look of Shaker’s owl and Weib storks reminded me of my Alsace where I grew up. I picked up Boxman for a funny pictures of chicken with their heads out, Shiju Sugunan for a truly exotic bird (red-naped ibis), SteveF325 for a cinematic shock, very Hitchcock-like and Xerraire for a great portrait of a kookaburra

With a week full of birds, my pick of the week had to be one of them. I was split between several but finally set my heart on Ellebelle‘s lonely bird. I love the framing and the fact that this lonely cutie seems to be chirping.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #11

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Spectrum for Best of 43 (14 Oct – 20 Oct), Rue Du Lavoir for Theme 43 : Begins with “H” and Twiggy for Technique 21 : Free Lensing. Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 43 (14 Oct – 20 Oct): I loved the expression in Spectrum‘s and Deja‘s pictures and am glad they are among the winners. I picked Fotochuk for a powerful black and white, Pictografio for a great moody shot with a nice contrast and Xerraire for a delicate shot of a beautiful bird.

• For Theme 43 – Begins with “H”: I love Batman and am really happy to see he’s the greatest hero and the winner of this challenge. I liked the Heron from Tede, the Hogweed from Ellebelle, the Hare from Day One but I settled in the end for the Hawk of Joel Schilling

• For Technique 21 – Free Lensing: If have a soft spot for heroes and action figures among others. That’s why I naturally picked up the action figure from Shaker.

My pick of the week is Joel Schilling for is sharp view of the hawk for Theme 43 – Begins with “H”. I love a good bird picture!

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #10

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Ruimnm for Best of 42 (07 Oct – 13 Oct) and Xerraire for Theme 42 : Skylines. Congratulations!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 42 (07 Oct – 13 Oct) : I real liked Remus‘ submission here as I found it very original and telling. I’m glad it’s among the winners. I picked Klaus Neuner for the beautiful fresh look and Rue Du Lavoir.
  

• For Theme 42 – Skylines : I picked Monica for once again great colors as she is used to to, Rue du Lavoir for a very strong picture that illustrates loneliness and Shaker for the strong lines and colors.

My pick of the week is Rue Du Lavoir for is beautiful dragonfly for Best of 42. Love the details and the vibrance of the colors.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #9

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Spectrum for Best of 41 (30 Sep – 06 Oct), Boxman for Theme 41 : Straight lines, Deja for Technique 20 : Macro of metal and Larans is the big winner for the Monthly Project 09 : Photo Hunt . Congratulations to them!

Celine and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 41 (30 Sep – 06 Oct) : I picked Orchard for a very joyful portrait and Xerraire for a beautiful silhouette with great colors.
  

• For Theme 41 – Straight lines : I picked Deja, Remus for the vibrant red and beautiful light and Shaker for the dynamic composition and a great title.

• For Technique 20 – Macro of metal: I picked Ellebelle for the repetition and the great metallic feel, Love2b because I’m a sucker for rust and textures and Wanderungen for a picture full of symbolism.

• For Monthly Project 09 – Photo Hunt: This project was slightly different from others and I was able to pick freely one picture as my favorite in each of the 5 categories. I picked Twiggy for the apple category for a tasty shot full of textures, Larans for bridge for a stunning light and great composition, Love2b for red for a great light and a vibrant red, Shaker for street for a nifty effect and Day One for “any” for a picture with a lot of story behind.

My pick of the week is Deja for Theme 41 – Straight lines. I love the pattern and the abstract feeling of that shot.

By Sebastien Grobelny

Photoblog Challenges : Results #3

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Remus for Best of 35 (19 Aug – 25 Aug), Deja for Theme 35 : One Flower and Xerraire for Technique 17 : Sun Rays.

Celine  and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 35 : Decisions were tough this week. I picked Hapzydeco for the fresh look on these cute birds, Klaus Neuner for the very expressive look of his dog and Leovi for his crystal clear fresh shot. 
  

• For Theme 35 – One Flower : I really liked the poetic touch from the ladybug in Ben’s shot. I picked Buntscheck for the very dramatic processing, PhotoLeoGrapher for a sharp view of an orchid and Rye Du Lavoir for a delicate shot once more.

• For Technique 17 – Sun Rays : The submissions were amazing an it took me the 2 weeks to decide who to vote for. You should really check this challenge out! I picked Monica and Pictografio as their sun rays were the major actor in their dramatic shots.

My pick of the week among the winners was the submission for Technique by Twiggy. It’s always a pleasure to see Twiggy‘s submissions as she is very creative and has a great eye.

Photoblog Challenges : Results #2

This week on Photoblogchallenges, the winners are Ruimnm for Best of 34 (12 Aug – 18 Aug) and Red Rock Photography for Theme 34 : Sunny.

Celine  and I are permanent guest judges and since the middle of the year we switched the roles a little. She has to pick one favorite from the winning pictures and I have to pick several “non-winners”.

Each week I will try to shed some light on some of my choices.

• For Best of 34 : There were a lot of great submissions this week. I’m glad that Mittened Hands is among the winners for his first submission. I really liked the fan’s passion and happiness. Congratulations and welcome! I picked Gumnut for the great layers of warm light, Remus for a flawless nostalgic shot, Xerraire for her amazing shot of a flying heron and Weib for a beautiful black and white with a funny title.

• For Theme 34 – Sunny : I really liked the processing from Twiggy. With various choices from everyone I only had one pick. I picked Vaido for the great feeling of holidays in these last days of summer.

My pick of the week among the winners was the tape from Remus. It reminded me of so much good memories. Loved the mechanical aspect of these.