We are happy to announce that the winner of the RSDS Photo Competition for August 2024 has been chosen. Congratulations to Patricia Marin Lucas with her photo "Surface Interval Goals".
Patricia wins a free stay at the RSDS village of her choice. You can view the winning photo, and all the August participants here.
If you would like a chance to win, simply register on our website and upload your photos from our competition page. Each day we choose a 'photo of the day' from the selection of entries. Anyone can register on our website and vote on photos entered into the competition. At the end of the month our Photo Pro and photography workshop leader, Paul ‘Duxy’ Duxfield, looks at the votes and chooses a winner from the highest scoring photos. Full terms and conditions and prize details are available here.
Congratulations again to Patricia, and good luck to all those participating in the coming months!
From Paul Duxfield, our competition judge:
August was another one of those months where I was gifted with an embarrassment of riches, what I mean is that again there were some cracking pictures and a couple of definite front runners.
As is often my choice though I’ll wax lyrical a little, about the ones that got away.
Sandor Balovics aptly titled ‘’The Boom” of an exploding school of Indian Mackerel facing the camera is very striking but I felt that whilst the subject was sound and the reactions of Sandor capturing the moment excellent I felt that the white balance and colour of the shot was a little monochrome, if shot in RAW then this could have been easily remedied or at the time in camera using the manual white balance. If neither of these options were available Sandor then maybe it’s time to join a workshop and learn how to do it? because there’s no faulting your reactions or framing abilities which show great potential.
I’m also drawn to Kareem’s topside picture of the tents in the moonlight, I don’t see enough topside shots and part of the charm of Shagra, Nakari and Lahami is their beautiful surroundings and aesthetically designed structures.
Paul Eijkemans Trigger fish eye is very dramatic and a bit Lord of the Rings if you can get my reference to the Eye of Sauron?
It always seems to end up with two that I struggle to make a decision about and in this case it was a very strong macro picture and a wideangle shot that could have been titled Joie de Vivre it has so much life in it.
Johann Altscach picture of a Fang Blenny in its hole either snooted in camera or vignetted in editing, I don't care which really, the end result is what matters to me in this case, is a very characterful picture, and is beautifully posed, lit and super sharp. Patience is needed too usually for this type of capture.
Patricia Marin Lucas had two good shots in the competition this month, her Dugong picture was excellent but I much preferred her reaction shot of dolphins heading straight at the camera, very tightly composed and as I said it just shouts Joy of Life at you, as they really look like they are having fun, as Im sure you did whilst shooting it Patricia.
So difficult picking between the two though, but after and hour or so where I went away and came back to the computer I’ve decided upon the dolphin picture so commiserations Johann it was a very close thing but the picture I preferred in the end is Patricias.
So well done Patricia and keep on entering the competition folks you never know you may be the next winner.
And if you’d like to join our Workshop in the summer next year co hosted by me and the super talented and sharp eyed nudibranch queen Sarah O’Gorman, then get in quick as places are going fast.
