Travel, Landscape, Fashion Photography

Guest Post by David Pollard

“Looking Back”

Best in Show Award

 I’d like to thank Garry for this opportunity to comment on my recent Best in Show Award at the 2011 Ottawa-Outaouais Inter Club Photography Competition.  Garry, one of three judges, describes the competition’s background in a previous entry.

To say that I was stunned by my result is an understatement.  The quality and variety of the 183 digital and print submissions was, to me, impressive.  I was satisfied with my entries to the point where I was prepared to submit them (are we ever truly satisfied?) and had thought the portrait might do well.  Notwithstanding, over the course of the evening, and as the photo review progressed, I reached a  point where I simply hoped for a reasonable score.  Thus, to receive a perfect score from all three judges for my print “Looking Back” was beyond my wildest dreams.  And yes I”m satisfied with the result for my other submission even though wasn’t a winner.

What has this competition and its result meant to me?  First, it validates my work; after all I was reasonably happy with the print to start with.  Second, it  means I should trust my own judgement but continue to seek input from others; those who had previously seen the print thought highly of it, even earlier discarded versions.  I am my own harshest critic and once I’ve decided on an approach I don’t always like to hear criticism from others (I might change my approach but that’s my choice).  The lesson then is don’t ask if you if you’re not going to listen.  Lastly, in a competition, you don’t really know how the judges are going to base their scoring.  So, while it’s fantastic to win, in the end you learn more by losing.  If you’ve done your best and are satisfied with your submission, then learn from the judges comments and keep them in mind for the next time. 

Regarding the photo: shot during an October 2009 workshop outing to Upper Canada Village in Morrisburg, Ontario (UCV).  The subject, one of the UCV interpreters, was standing in the doorway of the Livery located behind Cook’s Tavern.  The original file shows him from head to knees but my preference was to crop to a head and shoulders portrait.  For those interested in the technical info: shot with a Nikon D700, RAW in 14 bit mode, 105 mm @ f/5.6, 1/60 second, ISO 400, distance to subject 3.4 meters, matrix metering with fill flash, and auto white balance.  It was printed using an Epson Stylus Pro 3800 on Epson UltraSmooth Fine Art Paper.

Thanks for reading.

 David Pollard