Countryfile

I do wonder sometimes about the great British public. Tonight the results of the BBC Countryfile photography competition were announced and the main prizewinner in the public telephone vote was Bill Robinson with this picture, called The Dell:

It's a pretty scene and the curve of the bluebell glade mirrors the curve of the tree branches in a pleasing way. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that Mr Robinson should taste success, having never won a photography prize before. But I couldn't help thinking that the following picture, 'Pier Sunset', was comfortably the strongest of the finalists:

For a start, it's a very unusual take on a sunset scene and has the most striking bands of colour. It also uses the rule of thirds well, with the two people at an intersection of thirds and the sun positioned in a strong area compositionally. When I first saw this shot I immediately said 'wow' out loud. And the judges who narrowed down thousands of entries to a handful of finalists made it their favourite (so photographer Tim Clifton came away with some kind of prize).

But the general public were not quite as impressed. I'm stumped as to why such a fantastic, original shot should miss out to another shot of a bluebell glade. I'd love to hear from anyone who has a different take than me. After all, picking competition favourites is, by its very nature, a purely subjective exercise.