Members Choice CompetitionThe Member's Choice competition is a fun monthly competition which is run in-house. It's purpose is to allow members to show their images in a friendly and fun way.
The topics for the year's Member's Choice competition is set at the start of the year. Prizes are awarded to first and second places.
Pop along to see Danielle, get your favourite images printed professionally and see the difference it makes to the way your image looks. |
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Member's Choice Topics for 2025
2025 Changes.....
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February
Spoon
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Spoon! Yes, you heard that right!
This month, we’re asking you to focus on photographing a spoon. It might sound straightforward, but there are countless creative ways to make a spoon the star of the show. Spoons have shiny surfaces that reflect light and surroundings beautifully, so experiment with reflections—capture the world mirrored in the spoon or use the reflections to create abstract and intriguing images. Play with different lighting conditions, from natural light to artificial light, or even backlighting, to highlight the spoon's shape and texture. Get creative with your perspectives: Shoot from above, below, or at an angle to find the most interesting composition. Use contrasting backgrounds to make your spoon stand out. Get in close to get a detailed macro shot. Think about incorporating the spoon into a scene to tell a story — maybe it’s part of a beautifully set table, stirring a cup of coffee, or lying next to a delicious dessert. What we’re asking of you is this: explore the creative possibilities of a seemingly ordinary object. Let your imagination run wild and have fun with it! We can't wait to see how you make a simple spoon extraordinary! (Ref: 52 Frames https://52frames.com/) |
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March
Wee beasties
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Your chance for some macro work......or not. (What exactly are 'beasties'?) Get down low, get up close, get uncomfortable....and show us your best....or worst....wee beasties, in whatever form they take. You may want to bounce some soft, diffused light onto your subject to bring out its best qualities.
Google search ideas |
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April
Water
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There are so many ways to capture water. If you like a dreamy waterfall, slow shutter is your friend, but if you love the frozen-looking drops that go flying when you burst a water balloon, you’ll want a fast shutter speed.
From the big, booming breakers at the beach to a single droplet from your kitchen tap - water is with us every day. It arrives as droplets on dewy mornings and it surrounds our little Island. Get creative! Water has a reflective property or can be used as a prism to bend light and create fascinating reflections, or it can add to the scene of still life or food photography to add a whole new element of interest. Think outside the jug of how your brain says water can be photographed. Whilst ice is a frozen form of water, ice is ice, not water. Stick to the fluid form for this one! Ref 52 Frames: https://52frames.com/albums/2024/week-30-water/challenge Google search ideas |
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May
Wabi Sabi
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侘寂 Wabi Sabi is a Japanese concept that more or less translates into the art of finding beauty in imperfection. It celebrates wrinkles, rust, liver spots, cracks and frayed edges because they represent the time that has passed and the signs of a lived life.
It can also be understood by making an imperfect thing even better than it originally was. Filling a cracked pottery with gold leaf, for example, the “fixed” and “imperfect” product has more value than it had when it was whole (also a Japanese style apparently, called “Kintsugi”) Wabi Sabi invites us to appreciate the beauty in imperfection, transience, and simplicity. This week, explore your surroundings to find scenes that are quietly evocative—moments that reveal beauty in the worn, the humble, or the naturally flawed aspects of home life. (Ref: 52 Frames https://52frames.com/) Check out more about Wabi Sabi photography inspiration here: https://www.digitalphotomentor.com/wabi-sabi-photography-challenge-embrace-imperfection/ |
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June
Rusty, dusty or musty
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Grunge rules the roost this month. Think decay, think old, think long-forgotten.... Cobwebs and dust....furniture and tools....mould and mildew. Your lighting will be important to bring out the best (or worst?) of your subject so it's not just a case of what you photograph, but how you photograph it too.
Google search ideas |
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July
Umbrellas
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They keep the rain off you, right? Or the sun..... They're black, right? Or bright and colourful. They can hide a stolen kiss or threaten a thief. It's winter now so there will probably be a few brollies about on the street.......or maybe you can use one as a prop for a posed image?
Google search ideas |
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August
One colour
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You could focus on a strong colour in your photograph that pops out.
Your whole photo could only be in one colour. Or you could use Selective colour: an effect that lets you fully or partially desaturate a photo while preserving one or more focal colours. For example, you can preserve the bright yellow of a taxicab while making everything else in the scene black-and-white. Selective Colour lets you preserve one or more focal colours. Google search ideas |
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September
Speed/movement
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The illusion of speed can be 'seen' when either the background or the subject appear to be moving. Use a slow shutter speed to blur the motion, or try panning with the subject to keep it relatively in-focus whilst also blurring the background. Movement can happen in many directions......swirls & twirls, up and down, back and forth, towards and away......go forth and experiment.
Google search ideas |
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October
Music
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Sing a song of sixpence, AC/DC, Brahms.........it's all about the sound. But how do you 'photograph' the music? Don't be constrained in your thinking.......anything that is associated with music could be your inspiration.....the musicians, the instruments, the venue, the feelings the music evokes, the lights, the colour, the mood. Explore different perspectives, explore close-ups and wide angles, explore colour and monochrome.....
Google search ideas |
Images are due by the end of each month and will be shown during the first meeting of the following month.
Conditions of EntryFinancial members may submit up to three images on a specified topic, (see the programme above),
Late entries cannot be accepted.
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Le Boreal - Tom Young
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Very worthwhile prizes so be sure to submit your images each month.
By entering this competition you agree to the Nelson Camera Club using your entered images for publicity purposes for the promotion of this competition. In particular you agree to the winning images being printed in the newsletter and on our website.
By entering this competition you agree to the Nelson Camera Club using your entered images for publicity purposes for the promotion of this competition. In particular you agree to the winning images being printed in the newsletter and on our website.
“Beauty can be seen in all things, seeing and composing the beauty is what separates the snapshot from the photograph.” |
All images on this site are copyright of the owners and must not be copied or reproduced in any way without the owners express permission.
