Got my report card from the Aesthetic Vision circuit in India this morning, and it's another great set of results. 28 acceptances across 6 judgings, all but one of them in the Open Color and Open Monochrome categories (and tilted two to one toward monochrome).

Lots to report on. Let's kick it off with:

Light in the darkness (Open Monochrome PIDM) (Club Silver, Accepted x5) Lilith and Eve (Open Color PIDC) (Accepted x5) Shasta II (Open Monochrome PIDM) (Accepted x5)Shasta II
6I8A6319 (3-16-2020)
08-22-2017
Shasta Wonder
Lynnwood, Washington

2021-11-20 Vidin Spring Circuit (Bulgaria and Serbia) (Nude Mono PIDM), as "Shasta": Accepted; Salon Gold Medal in Pazardzhik, Bulgaria

1. "Light in the darkness," Mikki Marvel, downtown Seattle, July 2016: Silver Medal! And accepted in 5 of 6 judgings. I submitted this photo twice before -- in a "Shadows" special theme and, in its color version, in a "Woman" theme; neither were successful, though both came close in their scoring. I'm pleased -- I really like this image, especially in its color version. I like the symmetry and symbolism of it, with "light" representing both the literal light on the top of the Alaska Building in the background and in the alleyway, and figuratively the naturalness of the human body in its unclothed state.
2. "Lilith and Eve," Vex Voir and Katlyn Lacoste, Interlaken Park, Seattle, June 2017: accepted in 5 of 6 judgings. I've submitted this photo a lot of places and it's gratifying to see it finally succeed somewhere, because I absolutely love this photo too. I like the figurative references, both in the title and imagery, to the Garden of Eden, and I like the subtle touch of fading to black and white around the edges, as if the Garden and the naturalness it represents is surrounded by something less vibrant. It's a similar theme to the previous image, actually.
3. "Shasta II," Shasta Wonder, Lynnwood, August 2017: accepted in 5 of 6 judgings. Just a simple figure study. I'm really pleased by how well this set of images has done over the years, given that it's nothing more than the raw talent of Shasta as a model posed against a textured white kitchen wall in natural light.
   Cardinal Sins (Open Monochrome PIDM) (Accepted x4)Cardinal Sins
   B75A9622 (05-19-2019)
   03-15-2019
   Lior Allay
   Gas Works Park, Seattle, Washington
   
   2021-05-18 Photoshoot Awards (online contest), "Nude2021": Finalist On the rocks (Open Monochrome PIDM) (Accepted x4)On the Rocks
   B75A7166 (05-01-2021)
   07-16-2019
   Bunny Luna
   Pinnacle Peak, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington
   
   2021-10-15 Kladovo Summer Circuit (Cuprija, Serbia) (Nude Mono PIDM): Accepted
4. "Cardinal Sins," Lior Allay, Gas Works Park, Seattle, March 2019: accepted in 4 of 6 judgings. Another variation on my favorite theme, this time reversing the concept and metaphorically showing the natural nude human body in conflict with the modern urbanized world. Lior is such an amazing artist and conveyed so much emotion in this set of images, made at dawn on a late-winter day. The title is a visual pun based on the bas-relief sculpture of cardinal directions at the top of the hill, and society's assessment of the natural human body as sinful.
5. "On the rocks," Bunny Luna, Pinnacle Peak, Mount Rainier National Park, July 2019. Accepted in 4 of 6 judgings. Another simple figure study, with an interesting composition on the granodioritic rock of the Tatoosh Range. Interesting features include the visible scuff-marks on Bunny's torso from earlier in the photoshoot, and, if you zoom in, a mosquito sampling their left breast. I probably should have edited out both, but it also makes for an interesting image.
   Earth, Water and Fire (Open Color PIDC) (Accepted x3) Clay (Open Color PIDC) (Accepted)
6. "Earth, Wind and Fire," Katlyn Lacoste, Ohanapecosh, Mount Rainier National Park, March 2022. Accepted in 3 of 6 judgings. I love this location, I love this pose, and I especially love the combination of the two. It's both natural and surreal at the same time. And the colors are not enhanced in any way -- the water really is this blue-green. And Katlyn really is this fire.
7. "Clay," Katlyn Lacoste, Shriner Peak, Mount Rainier National Park, September 2020. Accepted in 1 of 6 judgings. The least "successful" of my accepted images from a judging standpoint, but I love this image nonetheless. For one thing, we worked damn hard to get to the top of this peak for a sunset photoshoot. And Katlyn's ability to effortlessly create sculptures with her body is why I titled this one "Clay."

The single acceptance outside the open categories was in Photo Travel. Just one acceptance out of 24 possibilities. Ouch. And in the nature category, none at all. Double ouch. Overall I think it's become clear that my skills are not in the specialized fields (nature, travel, and photojournalism) but rather in the more general artistic realm. At least in comparison to other photographers. And I'm OK with that. It's good to know. I won't waste my money entering those categories in the future (though I'll still contribute if I can do so with no additional cost).