July Contest (Independent) Winner

[Lee White]

ok guys, another month has passed and another group of awesome images have been turned in. You like making my life difficult don't you!! It was very hard to choose this month. It was a tricky topic and you guys performed amazingly!

But as always I have to pick and choose. If you are interested in the judging criteria, it basically goes like this: I look at each entry and evaluate the concept first, then I look and see how it's pulled off (technique). With me, I tend to weigh unexpected solutions and images more. Technique is always appreciated, but concept and technique will always win. I look for a creative solution to the problem (but still hits the task at hand).

And here's how it broke down:

Winner: @harveywalls

This image seemed so perfect to me. The composition and color are great. It's an immediate read and everything is handled well. The details of the snow coming off him is great. Then I saw the belt and that is such a thoughtful detail. Great work Harvey!

2nd place: @markoman & @Eric-Castleman

I couldn't decide on a solid 2nd place, then I remembered I can do anything I want since I co-own the school, so I awarded two second place images! Marco's image was so cool and unique. The color balance was awesome and I really loved the editorial feel of it.

Apparently I love penguins and Eric's was really amazing. The technique was flawless and I loved it. I see a whole picture book story here Eric. I wanna know what happens to that penguin?!!!

3rd Place: @NoWayMe

This concept was a little dark, but I really like all the storytelling that it depicts. And it is refreshing to see an image that a lot of kids could relate to. On top of that the lighting, color, and design are top notch.

Rounding out the top 10:

!
@Dennis-Spaans Great concept and execution. Loved seeing this on the forums.

@Embla Such a unique take on the subject. Very fun to see all the details inside the windows and the lone figure on top. Beautiful.

!
Lisa's image of a tiger in the bath was so intimate and painted in a very controlled watercolor technique. Not so easy to do! Nice work Lisa!

!
@RHirsch I saw a few different takes on the "kid doing adult stuff" theme and I thought this one really hit it. I love her attitude!

@stringfellowart This look you are getting is so fun and unique. It reminds me of "The Fantastic Mr. Fox". Lovely.

@Jose-Ramos lovely rendering and lighting. Charater design is very professional as well. I'd like to see more from this story!

That's our top 10. Thanks again to everyone who entered. I can't wait to see what you guys do next month!! : )

[A Former User]

Congratulations to all the winners! Amazing work.

[lmrush]

Congratulations @harveywalls fantastic image, well done!. Congrats to all of the entries, and I feel honored to be part of the top 10. Thank you Lee for taking the time to do this, it is such a fun and creativity promoting contest.

[Jon Anderson]

Congrats @harveywalls and also to all of you who made the top 10! You all had really fun pieces that were a joy to see.

[Dennis Spaans]

Congratulations @harveywalls - It was me and my wife's best pick too :).

And I'm also honored to be mentioned in such a talented crowd :), well done everyone!

[bnewman]

Congratulations all! Really great to see such diversity.

[Eric Castleman]

Awesome! Everyone is getting better and better each month, and I am just honored to be mentioned with you all. In fact, @markoman is someone I really admire watching post on social media, so to share 2nd with him is awesome! @lmrush your watercolor keeps getting better and better btw. @Chip-Valecek entry was really solid, and I love how you make the slideshow each month.

I really liked everyone's entries. Looking forward to this month's entries.

P.s @Lee-White I'll just tell you the story. The penguin meets different animals on his journey, and finally makes it to New York, where he immedietly gets shot with a tranquilizor, because he's a penguin. jk, thanks for the great words and doing this each month.

[Christine Garner]

I love all of these pictures, I haven't had time to look through them all yet, but they are particularly excellent this month and well done to the winners

[TessaW]

Great job everyone, and congratulations! @lmrush I'm glad you went with your instincts and entered your tiger in the bath!

[A Former User]

Thank you so much! I am honored! Many great entries! I enjoyed following everyone's stages that were posted. And thank you all for your support. I will be posting this link and www.svslearn.com on my social media sites! Good luck next month everyone! - Harvey
https://xpressionsdesign.deviantart.com/

[A Former User]

@eric-castleman I loved your crosshatching style!

[lmrush]

@tessw thank you!

[lmrush]

@eric-castleman thank you Eric. And you already know what a fan I am of yours

[RHirsch]

Congratulations to everyone! I'm delighted to be in the top ten, thank you!

[stringfellowart]

Great work everyone! I'm honored to make it into the top ten!

[MOO]

Congratulations to the top ten! So wonderful for you to be chosen and such an accomplishment for your hard work!. Gives the rest of us something to strive for

[Kat]

Great job, everyone! You are such an amazing bunch of artists, I love seeing your work.

[seelliott]

So much great work! I hoped the penguin one would win. Looking forward to next months entries.

[markoman]

Congrats to everyone! Thank you @Lee-White and whole SVS team. I learned so much in the last past years from you guys and community on the forum.
@Eric-Castleman it's an honor to be mentioned with you. Thank you for your kind words.

[Jose Ramos]

Great stuff this month!