PW by DAVID CRUTCHLEY

I thought I’d find choosing so difficult as we were unable to make it along to the meeting so had no idea what to expect. And choosing was indeed difficult, but that was because of the general high quality and indeed the variety of the submitted images. There was a surprising range of interpretations from just those few photographic set-ups.
I very much liked Sue Haddrill’s “Urgent Message” which caught the executive feel of Phil’s busy businessman, in particular the way his clenched right hand nicely complemented his facial expression. Mike Mellor’s “Stan Beggarby” also seems to capture a real person, rather than a photo-shoot model, with the expression somewhere between despair and apprehension. “Sue Best II” from Rodney Dinnen sang out as a real portrayal of Sue’s
lively personality. I’d prefer to have seen the square format which so often suits a portrait used here to concentrate the attention on the bright and breezy top part of the image.
A very close second for me was Andy Best’s “Old Man Battling the Storm”. It’s so well put together that you really cannot see the joins and the concept is great. Maybe the wave behind him is a tad too light and maybe the lighting on the figure is a little too even, but it is a super picture.
Anyway, my final choice is from David Crutchley “PW”. A good, close crop. Excellent lighting and that clear view of those eyes with such a telling expression. The applied Photoshop filter worked very well, removing some of the detail in hat and hair that could otherwise be distracting. It, too, looks very much like a real portrait of a real person. Great work, David.
And great work, Elaine and Phil (and everyone else involved with lights, backgrounds, etc.). It was evidently a really good evening and I’m very sorry that we were not able to come – we clearly missed a treat.

Margaret Smith