Judges Comments

This is a highly engaging and emotive image. The young boy’s eyes draw us into the feeling of the moment. Holding this image back from scoring higher are some some considerations,
that have such a profound impact to this image. A tighter portrait crop from just below the boy’s right elbow on the left side of the frame, with additional cropping from both sides and
slightly from the top, would place his eyes on the upper thirds of the frame and position the held photograph strongly on the bottom right-third intersection. This would also reduce
the distracting elbow in the top-right corner. Toning down the background and the elbow area behind the boy’s head would further strengthen the image and, for me, lift it to Merit.