Challenge! Cameraderie Challenge #74: Solitary Winner Announced

[donlaw]

Officially closed as of now. Thanks to all who submitted. as Miguel noted, all amazing photos. It will be a real challenge to choose a single winner. Stay tuned.

 

[donlaw]

Sorry to take so long to review these. Busy times with the SIN and the Daily Image threads as well. Plus there is a lot going on around here that has added to a sense of anxiety and tension. (elections)

Thanks to every one who entered a submission! It was an honor to be chosen to pick a theme that resulted in such outstanding photographs. Which made it really hard to choose the winner.
I did enlist the help of my wife and two daughters to help choose the winner!
Here is a short blurb given my thoughts about each of these:

@Briar : Excellent image. Perfect fit for this theme. I love the timeless nature of the subject and setting. It seems like this could have been taken 100 years ago. Not only solitary but searching for better pastures. Nice one Karen.

@Irene McC : I love this image. Right on theme and sky is amazing.

@MiguelATF : A very cool solitary beach image. I like that the water and fog blend together creating the asense of a misty experience.

@wee-pics : The colors and bokeh are lovely here. I get the sense it is solitary growth of flowers, but the multiple bunching makes it seem a little less on theme.

@5354photos : The juxtaposition of the solitary walker on the crosswalk with the bare tree limbs is cool. Nice image.

@Mr_Flibble : I am so glad you gave the location for this image. I adds a sense of historical perspective. And this gentleman seems to be having a reflective moment. Nice.

@Rick-Australia : Cool image, that fits the theme well. It reminds me of many times when I have sat alone in a park. The tree limbs give it a good framing too.

@bartjeej : Amazing image. Absolutely the most solitary subject of all these submissions. Thanks for sharing the location. Resiliency in such a harsh environment makes this remarkable.

@dab : Great image that is right on theme. The child between what looks to be foundation of some old construction adds to the solitary feel. Nice.

@e-light : This is a cool image. Looks to be a hub for transportation. Train station? I like the blurred walker. However too many people in the image to be right on the theme.

@JayOC : Love the way this image highlights the solitary walker on the sunny side of the street. Also, this has a nice balance with the shadowy side too. Nice one.

@Bozzie : Nice overhead perspective on the speckled flooring material. The solitary traveler is rendered hurried with the blurring. Reminds me of many travel days in my past. Excellent.

@OCBeyer : Great setting and nicely rendered. This image is an outstanding example of the theme. Cool rock too.

Winner is @bartjeej you get the honor of choosing the theme and hosting Challenge #75
Your image really nails the solitary theme and is just outstanding.

 

[bartjeej]

Thanks Don, much appreciate your kind words! Also thanks for hosting this Cameraderie Challenge and for taking the time for these thorough evaluations!

(finally, thanks to your wife and daughters for contributing to the judging process 😎)

I'll ponder the theme for the next Cameraderie Challenge and be back short(ish)ly.

 

[MiguelATF]

A mind-bogglingly cool contest with amazing entries and truly thoughtful judging by Don and his clan... and serious congrats for a rather amazing winner - that Mauritania image of a tree in the middle of nowhere is... well, it literally took my breath away. Major props for a brilliant image.

 

[Briar]

Congratulations bartjeej, that sure is a lonely tree. My experience of the Sahara desert is limited (Tunisia) but I do remember the sand was super, super soft, unlike any other sand I've encountered. Was it hard work hiking in the desert? It sounds like an adventure!

 

[bartjeej]

Congratulations bartjeej, that sure is a lonely tree. My experience of the Sahara desert is limited (Tunisia) but I do remember the sand was super, super soft, unlike any other sand I've encountered. Was it hard work hiking in the desert? It sounds like an adventure!

It was a 5 day, 100km walk between 2 ancient caravan towns (Chinguetti and Ouadane), with a local goatherder as a guide and 2 of his camels to carry our stuff. I rode one of the camels for two short stretches but found the wooden saddle they use in that region extremely uncomfortable, so I ended up walking alongside the camels, just like the goatherder. Camels don't like walking in sand dunes and they're a navigational risk, so the traditional caravan routes avoid big dunefields like the plague. Luckily for them, only about 20% of the Sahara consists of dunes; most is rock, fields of clay with pebbles or larger stones, or hardpacked sand such as in this photo (there's a thin layer of loose sand on top making the ripple pattern). So it was a fairly solid surface to walk on most of the time, but the hot days, cold nights, dry air (dried-out rubbing skin), sharp stones, occasional needle-sharp grass and a constant barrage of flies using us as free transport made it an altogether considerable challenge.

 

[Briar]

It was a 5 day, 100km walk between 2 ancient caravan towns (Chinguetti and Ouadane), with a local goatherder as a guide and 2 of his camels to carry our stuff. I rode one of the camels for two short stretches but found the wooden saddle they use in that region extremely uncomfortable, so I ended up walking alongside the camels, just like the goatherder. Camels don't like walking in sand dunes and they're a navigational risk, so the traditional caravan routes avoid big dunefields like the plague. Luckily for them, only about 20% of the Sahara consists of dunes; most is rock, fields of clay with pebbles or larger stones, or hardpacked sand such as in this photo (there's a thin layer of loose sand on top making the ripple pattern). So it was a fairly solid surface to walk on most of the time, but the hot days, cold nights, dry air (dried-out rubbing skin), sharp stones, occasional needle-sharp grass and a constant barrage of flies using us as free transport made it an altogether considerable challenge.

For fun or were you forced to go?! Seriously, that does sound an adventure mixed in with a little torture. Well done.

 

[bartjeej]

Type 2 fun, the kids call it

 

[e-light]

Sorry to take so long to review these. Busy times with the SIN and the Daily Image threads as well. Plus there is a lot going on around here that has added to a sense of anxiety and tension. (elections)

@e-light : This is a cool image. Looks to be a hub for transportation. Train station? I like the blurred walker. However too many people in the image to be right on the theme.
- -


Winner is @bartjeej you get the honor of choosing the theme and hosting Challenge #75
Your image really nails the solitary theme and is just outstanding.

Yes, it is Hamm a little city near Dortmund, with an old Station and I was as others together but lonely in waiting for a train during a strike

Congratulations to bartjee
The size of the tree in the area really highlights the point of the topic