1^st - "ShooFly"

by Bill Schwarz ©

"Amazing capture.  Pin sharp focus .  Great comp.  Colors really work;  I've never seen a shoo fly and a bee in the same frame before. Great job getting everything in focus; Great Bokeh; good catch light in eye."

2^nd - "Fern"

by Sonya Lang ©

"Technically superb.  Great expression on bear.  Lots of personality. lovely action shot. Hairs all in focus, great lighting."

3^rd - "Osprey With Fish"

by Steve Lightle ©

"Beautiful portrait of this bird. Amazing shot with great detail.  So well positioned, great action shot, telling a story."

HM - "Crane's Hairdoo"

by Sonya Lang ©

"Very artistic, unusual portrait.  Interesting lighting and subject. Great sharp focus."

HM - "Female Osprey"

by Sherrie Tallman ©

"Great use of shallow DOF.  Pin sharp focus on bird.  Interesting pose. lovely action shot- wish the hatchling was more visible. Good focus."

HM - "Young Merganser"

by Steve Lightle ©

"Technically excellent.  Striking subject. Perfect lighting."

2022 Assigned Subject Competition-
"Patterns In Nature"

1^st - "Dew Drops"

by Renee Deierling ©

"Tech excellent.  Imaginative approach.  Green pops off the page; love how the dew drops line the leaves. Contrast between leaf and bubbles is very uniform."

2^nd - "Patterns In Death Valley"

by Tracy Carson ©

"Great use of light and shadow.  Beautiful subject. Like the layers and contrasting textures. Lighting and shadows bring out impressions of rock."

3^rd - "Sooty Grouse"

by Deb Smith ©

"Tech well done.  Good use of focus to help bird stand out  from background. Nice detail, color, and bokeh. Would have scored higher if the bird had been doing something. Good demonstration of camouflage, good catch light in eye."

HM - "Hexagons"

by Bill Schwarz ©

"Tech well done.  Interesting choice of patterns. Sharp, good detail. Good patterns and focus."

HM - "Kealakekua Lava Flow"

by Dell Deierling ©

"Superb color and comp.  Great use of leading lines. Nice patterns, blown highlights. Good leading lines from rocks to sunset."

HM - "Overlapping Layers"

by Roger Patterson ©

"Well done - Interesting subject, but I  would have cropped below snow line."

HM - "Prickly Pattern"

by Tracy Carson ©

"Rule of odds nice pattern, lost detail in the shadows, Good lighting of 3 flowers , crop on left achieves good balance."

HM - "Sea Anemone"

by Sherrie Tallman ©

"Fascinating pattern, good detail, midtones seem a little flat. Very well focused, no reflections, good lighting."

1^st - "Hawkweek"

by Bill Schwarz ©

"Striking color.  Nice comp and selective focus. Love the angled depth of field because it places emphasis on the most visually appealing part of the plant; great colors and detail. Fantastic bokeh, great color/balance; very good focus."

2^nd - "Iceland Bloom"

by Dell Deierling ©

"Looks 3D.  Gorgeous color and great comp. Nice composition and bokeh; the dewdrops take it up a notch for me. Classic lupine with sky, good color."

3^rd - "Water Flower"

by Sonya Lang ©

"Technically great.  Dramatic use of light. The contrasting primary colors and variations in texture draw me in. Good lighting on flowers."

HM - "Calypso Orchid 2022"

by Steve Lightle ©

"The soft, monochromatic colors combined with a very shallow depth of field draw me in. Soft petals in background compliment petals in foreground."

HM - "Death Camas"

by Sonya Lang ©

"The soft, monochromatic colors combined with a very shallow depth of field draw me in. Soft petals in background compliment petals in foreground."

HM - "Indian Thistle"

by Kevin Siefke ©

"Technically fine.  Bravo for capturing the thistle at this stage in its life; great detail; the background is generally very good but there are a couple of light spots that are distracting. Great focus; purple draws attention to center."