The Photo Contest: Open Spaces

The winner of our 45th bi-monthly contest is Mercedez McCartney. We chose her image "Schoolhouse" for its simplicity, composition and technical merit. What better represents one aspect of our theme than a lonely school house surrounded by fields and prairie underneath an expansive sky. Her placement of the building on the lower third surrounded by the negative space of the green fields and the blue skies emphasizes the isolation. There is also the emotional component that a schoolhouse has for many of us, especially one from a previous century. We can only imagine the hardships faced by the students and the teacher in this harsh land. McCartney will receive a copy of CompuPic Pro from Photodex Corporation.

First runner-up was "Fitz Roy Panorama" by Pepper Etters. This image as well stood out for its composition and technical merit. Using the panaroma aspect emphasizes the vastness of the this mountain range. The lighting also caught our eye. This is a very pleasing image and one that a viewer would not get tired of viewing when hung in an office or home. Etters will receive a year's subscription to PhotoTechniques magazine.

Second runner-up was Detrick Martin's "Long Way Up."  This represented another angle taken by many entrants on the the theme "Open Spaces." Here the open spaces are not the wide open spaces of a landscape, but the open spaces in a steel structure. Here the spaces themselves are the subject of the photo. This is a good illustration how negative space can be as important as the positive space. Just like the negative spaces of a sculpture, the spaces here present interesting patterns as our eye travels through the image.

Again, the other images were chosen for their strength and clarity, and their adherence to the theme. These also represented some of the best from a technical point of view. Kudos to everyone!

Please note: If you are a MAC user, please remember you must save your images with the proper extensions, i.e., .jpeg or .jpg.

Before sending in your images, please be sure to read over the submission guidelines at: http://www.apogeephoto.com/contest.shtml

Thanks again to PhotoTechniques and Photodex Corporation. Please make sure to visit them online.

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All images copyrighted by the individual photographers. All Rights Reserved. These images are for your viewing pleasure only and not be downloaded for any other purpose.

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	Grand Prize Winner "Schoolhouse" Mercedez McCartney Ormond Beach, Florida
	First Runner-up: "Fitz Roy Panorama" Pepper Etters Vail, Colorado
	Second Runner-up: "Long Way Up" Detrick Martin Eureka Springs, Arkansas
	Honorable Mention: "Look toward the infinity" Dominic Cantin Ste-Foy , Quebec, Canada
	Honorable Mention: "Untitled" Eric Amistani Milwaukee, Wisconsin
	Honorable Mention: "California Aqueduct near Lost Hills" Hollis Evans Glendale, California

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