After the simplicity and starkness of the monochrome prints last week, in this edition Irvine Camera Club is splashing the colour to liven things up a little with the results of our Colour Print competition. Judged on the same evening as mono prints, our friend Andy Stark wasted no time in getting into the vibrant and varied selection of work produced by the members. The joy of open subject competitions is that literally anything goes! So it was that we ended up with wonderfully saturated still life images like my study of a fern leaf “Closer”, pitched against lush landscapes such as Tracy Ross’s “Castle Stalker”, or architectural abstractions like Alan Kempster’s “No Left Turn”.
Presentation is everything in print competitions and, although we couldn’t see the actual prints on the night, Andy clearly appreciated the attention to detail in paper choice and mounting. This definitely paid off for Kevin Thorne who came in third place with his gorgeous image of Boscombe Pier which he had printed on a fine art paper which Andy admired for the tonal range and texture that it brought to the photograph.
But the night belonged to Michele Campbell who once again claimed the top 2 places. Her charming but intense studio portrait of Moose the cat has an immediate impact in its composition and posing that demands the viewer’s attention and really brings out the character of the subject. It was Michele’s very clever studio portrait of the “Little Librarian” which Andy picked out as his favourite of the evening. The use of props, posing, composition and lighting, together with a sumptuous palate of harmonious colours, brought the model to life. Needless to say, it was also beautifully printed and presented and it was Andy’s clear choice of winner.
Irvine Camera Club continues to meet virtually every Wednesday evening and you are most welcome to come along and join us. You can find all the details on our website www.irvinecc.co.uk or on the various social media platforms.
