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This Week’s Issue

Smoke, sage and elegance for the club photographers

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August 26, 2025

Whitianga Photographic Club met.

FROM ADMIN TEAM WHITIANGA PHOTOGRAPHIC CLUB

Members of the Whitianga Photographic Club had a lot of fun making some very creative Smoke photography images for our July challenge. We appreciate Gary McClintock dedicating his time to assess and judge both the competition entries and our Photo of the Month.

Judge’s Choice: ‘Sage Smoke’ by Chrissy Lawrence. Grade: Honours

“I was intrigued by this image that gave me an immediate sense of warmth. Initially my eye was taken to the candles and the connection with the man who is smoking.

The photographer’s selection of a candlestick with three candles is a good use of odd numbers which tend to be visually stronger. I then traced the smoke to its source, a sage smudge. Three possible sources of smoke.

The photographer has used a clever title. I saw the man as a sage, older and wiser. But then the smudge is sage. Smudging is an ancient cleansing ritual used in many cultures and sage is a commonly used herb.

It appears the man is actually the subject in a painting on the wall behind the candles and smoke.

The photographer has composed the image cleverly, giving the man and the candles basically, equal presence and brightness while the actual source of the smoke sits quietly in the darker slice at the base of the image. I really enjoyed this well constructed and clever image”

Photo of the Month: ‘Persephone’ by Kate Beauchamp

Judge’s Comments: “Elegance came to my mind immediately when I saw this image.

Persephone was the Greek Goddess of Spring and associated with agriculture and vegetation. I find the composition to be thoughtful and balanced. The dark base is balanced by the larger and lighter background. The subtle texture in the background adds interest. The bird’s head and the spout of the jug, mirror each other providing further balance, whilst the pomegranate pulls the image together. The elements are sharp with no artifacts obvious. The colour palette is muted, relaxing and consistent across the image. I can imagine this image gracing walls of an elegant room.”

The winning images, along with other entries from July, are available for viewing on our public Facebook page. August Challenge: This is light painting – a creative technique well-suited to enlivening winter evenings.

Email: whitiangaphoto@gmail.com.