Hey, I won a B&W Spider Award!

[James Clark]

Sometimes (oftentimes?) it's the simplest images...

I think I might have shared a similar, though not identical image here before, but "Aspen and Adobe" was shot on a random snowy morning in Santa Fe a few years ago, just because the textures of the snow, the tree bark and the adobe wall formed a nice natural palette of texture and tone.  Exposing and processing to hold texture and detail in  the snow was the hardest part.

Anyway, I found out Saturday that this image was awarded 2nd place overall, "Merit of Excellence" in the fine art, professional category, which made it a really nice weekend. 

[Rob C]

Congratulations!

Less is most decidedly more sometimes; pays to go with your instincts.

Rob

[John R]

Yes, congratulations. Love the repeating motif with the spotted areas of snow. Minimalist an well seen.

JR

[James Clark]

Thanks Rob & John!

It's becoming apparent over that whatever true talent I have for photography lies in graphics and minimalism.  Traditional landscape just doesn't quite get there for me, and the beautiful edge-of-night (or day) work that defines a lot of contemporary work just isn't my strong suit, either compositionally or, frankly, in terms of having a lifestyle that allows me to pursue those locations and opportunities.

I'm glad there's still some appreciation for work that seeks to eliminate content until something strong is left

[Alan Klein]

Congrats on the award.  Is there a place we can see some of your other photos?

[James Clark]

Congrats on the award.  Is there a place we can see some of your other photos?

Thanks Alan!  No place to see a full catalogue right now bc I'm in the middle of a full site renovation, but my placeholder content at www.jclarkgallery.com has a few of my favorite images

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

Congrats, James! A fine image indeed.

[Kevin Gallagher]

 What Slobodan said!!!

[Paulo Bizarro]

Congratulations. It is a very elegant image, with the snow draping the bottom of the tree.

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

... I'm glad there's still some appreciation for work that seeks to eliminate content until something strong is left

Upon further reflection, kudos to you for having the courage to submit something so simple and so elegant, yet so distant from the prevailing deluge of spectacular that seems to rule the world of competitions.

[MattBurt]

Congratulations! A beautiful subtle image too. Well deserved.

[Eric Myrvaagnes]

Let me add my hearty congratulations, too.
Very elegant image.
It's nice to know I'm not the only one who appreciates elegant simplicity.

-Eric