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Results round 2 results Going Abstract

It’s been another great round for APOY 2015.  Here are the results for the top 50 images from round 2 Going Abstract

Paul Cooper from Hereford is the winner of our Going Abstract round of APOY 2015. Paul will receive a Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM | A lens with a Sigma EF-610 DG Super flashgun and a Sigma USB Dock. That’s a total retail value of £1,099.97.

APOY-Round-2-Sigma-prizes-600
The Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM | A is the first zoom lens ever to achieve a maximum aperture of f/1.8 throughout the zoom range. It is a wide-aperture, standard zoom lens for DSLR cameras with APS-C-sized sensors. The lens has a focal range equivalent to 27-52.5mm in 35mm format and can cover the angles of view of multiple fixed-focal-length lenses. The lens integrates four aspherical elements into its construction, as well as five Special Low Dispersion (SLD) glass elements to help minimise various aberrations and distortions throughout the zoom range, while also providing greater image sharpness and clarity.

The Sigma EF-610 DG Super flashgun has a guide number (GN) of 61m @ ISO 100 and is designed to work with the latest TTL auto- exposure systems of all popular manufacturers’ digital and film SLRs, while its multifunctional shoe-mount-type flash will work with digital SLR cameras from most popular manufacturers. Among the diverse features of this flash are the autozoom function, which sets the illumination angle in accordance with the focal length of the lens from 24-105mm; TTL exposure control, which automatically regulates the amount of light; swivel-head functions; and light catch panel, which can create a catchlight in the eyes of the subject when the bounce flash mode is activated.

The Sigma USB Dock enables photographers to update firmware (meaning their lens is never ‘out of date’) and customise features of the lens, such as focus, via Sigma Optimization Pro software, which is available as a free download from Sigma’s website. Users can update using easy-to-operate on-screen controls to suit their preferences.

round 2 results Going Abstract

1st Paul Cooper, Hereford 50pts

1st Paul Cooper, Hereford 50pts

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 28-300mm, 180secs at f/8, ISO 200, Big Stopper ND filter, tripod

When we featured an abstract round in APOY 2013, we were overwhelmed by the response. With this in mind, we knew we had to include an abstract round for 2015. This winning image from Paul Cooper succeeds in that it takes a mundane outdoor pool scene and renders it unfamiliar. Paul used a Big Stopper ND filter and Color Efex Pro to give the picture a weird abstract quality. What’s particularly nice is the consistency of tone – the background is actually the ocean.

round 2 results Going Abstract

2nd Chris Ducker, Dublin 49pts

2nd Chris Ducker, Dublin 49pts

Nikon D300, 70-200mm, 1/25sec at f/5.6, ISO 200

Chris’s shot of a Yorkshire terrier certainly gave Paul’s winning image a run for its money. It’s a brilliant capture that straddles the border between abstract and portraiture. Chris has taken his shot at the optimum moment – meaning we have the right amount of detail for viewers to register that they are seeing a face.

round 2 results Going Abstract

3rd Steve Beckett, Aylesbury 48pts

3rd Steve Beckett, Bucks 48pts

Nikon D7000, 85mm, 1/160sec at f/8, ISO 200, Speedlight

‘The shot is of some bubbles from washing-up liquid backlit by a single Speedlight,’ says Steve. ‘I took a number of shots, with some taken with the white balance set to tungsten in order to give the image a blue tone. In the case of this image, I took it with the correct white balance, but adjusted it to tungsten in Lightroom to achieve the same effect.’

 

Top 50 entries for Going Abstract:

1 Paul Cooper 50pts
2 Chris Ducker 49pts
3 Steve Beckett 48pts
4 Alexey Samoylenko 47pts
5 Martin Rawle 46pts
6 Penny Halsall 45pts
7 Paul Robertson 44pts
8 Karen Wilkinson 43pts
9 Chris Whitelaw 42pts
10 Aaron Yeoman 41pts
11 Christopher Day 40pts
12 Greg Clucas 39pts
13 Bertrand Chombart 38pts
14 Alan Warriner 37pts
15 Piero Serra 36pts
16 John Phelan 35pts
17 Mark Cornick 34pts
18 Martin Shepherd 33pts
19 Stephen Bolton 32pts
20 Christophe Lemieux 31pts
21 Tom Lowe 30pts
22 Matt Emmett 29pts
23 Diogo Ferreira 28pts
24 Kyle Bonallo 27pts
25 Adrian Wai 26pts
26 Anna Hally 25pts
27 Steven Reid 24pts
28 Louis Little 23pts
29 Christos Tsitouridis 22pts
30 Theunis Viljoen 21pts
31 Chris Thompson 20pts
32 Dusica Paripovic 19pts
33 Ivor Levy 18pts
34 Ron Tear 17pts
35 Vladimir Barvinek 16pts
36 Steve Brewer 15pts
37 Ray Beauchamp 14pts
38 Alan Johnson 13pts
39 Juliet Evans 12pts
40 Mikhail Golovastikov 11pts
41 Mick Davis 10pts
42 Kenneth Houk 9pts
43 Ben Holland 8pts
44 Laura Hacking 7pts
45 Richard Moore 6pts
46 Simon Anderson 5pts
47 Svetlana Volkova 4pts
48 Roger Evans 3pts
49 Sailesh Patel 2pts
50 Jo Oliver 1pt

View the winning images in the APOY 2015 Gallery

The 2015 Leaderboard

This early on in the competition offers no hints as to how the contest will progress. Steven Reid and Svetlana Volkova are in joint first place, pushing Dave Stewart into joint third position with Paul Cooper. Chris Ducker is joint fifth with Matt Emmett.

Position Name Points
1 Steven Reid 53pts
1 Svetlana Volkova 53pts
3 Dave Stewart 50pts
3 Paul Cooper 50pts
5 Chris Ducker 49pts
5 Matt Emmett 49pts
7 Steve Beckett 48pts
7 Michael Marsh 48pts
9 Alexey Samoylenko 47pts
9 Alireza Teimoury 47pts
APOY 2015