By Virginia Simpson-Young on behalf of the Bulletin team, 6/2024, August
Only three photos this month. All three were highly regarded by the judges, which makes deciding a winner very difficult.
‘Glebe Point Road on a cold and wet night’, by Jane Gatwood
Two photos reference the rather cold and sometimes rainy weather we’ve been having lately. The brooding ‘Glebe Point Road on a cold and wet night’ by Jane Gatwood depicts the northern end of GPR where it drops down towards Pope Paul VI Reserve and transitions into Federal Road. The light from the bright moon is reflected by the wet road and leafless canopies of several street trees. Certainly the mood created by this photo was noted by several judges: ‘the warmth of the light on the bleak wet streetscape creates a mood of melancholy and nostalgia that draws the viewer in’; and ‘the light and reflections together with the purple glow in Glebe Point Road [is] very atmospheric.’
‘Wet Saturday afternoon (no sport)’ by Rodney Hammett
The other photo referencing the recent inclement weather is Rodney Hammett’s ‘Wet Saturday afternoon (no sport)’. For some reason, I find the photo’s title particularly evocative – and effective: primed by the title, I don’t really see what’s there but what’s not there; and my mind tries to put back what would be there if it weren’t a wet Saturday afternoon! This was a clear winner for some judges: ‘I can’t go past Jubilee Park with its wonderful use of lines including the almost imperceptible power lines. … the various angles of the lines form a barrier between the viewer and the gameless oval’.
‘Transition on Purves Street’ by Sue Ingram
I find Sue Ingram’s ‘Transition on Purves Street’ very interesting. Despite the twisted metal, broken PVC pipes, and partially-demolished walls, the scene seems ordered, not chaotic. It has a symmetry about it that I like. One judge noted that the photo was ‘well composed with the walls framing the stage where the action has happened and the foreground debris with the glove’. So framed, it’s the black glove that feels to me like the subject of this photo. It seems almost suspended in mid-air and has an unlikely playful perkiness to it, which gives the photo an upbeat feel. The light coming in from the left, illuminating mainly the back half of the scene, brightens the scene; it is cheerful and, to me, hopeful. Another judge liked this photo for a fairly pragmatic reason: it conveys that, for this photo competition, ‘not every photo has to be a picture postcard’. Further, this photo is ‘a reminder of our suburb’s changing built environment’.
This month’s winner
I think all three photos are winners, but we have to go with one. And based on the numbers, that one is ‘Transition on Purves Street’ by Sue Ingram. This photo will now be in the running for the photo of the year.
About ‘In Focus’
Have you recently taken a photo of Glebe-Forest Lodge that you particularly like? Please send it in! Keep your smartphone handy when you’re out and about, and snap something you find interesting, beautiful, new, old, colourful, animal or vegetable.
The fine print
Below is a reminder of the rules of our photo comp:
- The photo must be taken within the 2037 postcode
- The photo must be recent (not more than a year old)
- The photo must have been taken by a financial member of the Society
- The member warrants that they own copyright of the photo and licences the Society to use the photo in its publications and social media
- A member can enter only one image in each monthly competition
- The editorial committee will determine the monthly winner for publication, but selected other entries will be posted to our website
- The Management Committee will determine the overall winner.
Email your entries to editor@glebesociety.org.au. Please send photos at full resolution.
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