I need to raise my game

I went to camera club last night, and got slated!!  OK, the judges did seem to be stricter than they have been the last few times we've been, but still.  I'm very disappointed in myself.  I really need to raise my game.
Thinking about it over night, and in the traffic on the way to work this morning, I feel that maybe it's because I take photos every day... I'm just taking photos for the sake of taking photos at the moment, and not really trying to improve. 
But then, thinking about it... no, I do try.  But I'm really not taking quality photos at the moment with this camera.  I need to learn more about it, and try harder.  Anyhoo, here is what the judges said...

Bee - Bronze

They said there wasn't enough focus on the flower and the bee, it was blurred. Which it is if you enlarge it to the n'th degree. Apparently I should have used a tripod... funny that because I did ;) I didn't use the remote switch though, because the bee was moving so much.

Pineapply lily - Bronze

It was over-exposed. They liked the idea, and the way that i saw it though. But they thought that there was too much space on the right of the flower.

Sunset and scaffolding - Silver

There is too much sky on the left of the scaffolding. It apparently would have been better if there was a man on the scaffolding, and if I'd used a longer lens and the sun was bigger! OMW! Personally, I think that's a bit of a tall order.

Anyhoo, onwards and upwards, I'll have to do better next month!

Judges verdict

As I've mentioned before, Fiona and I joined a photographic club. We went to a meet last night and submitted photos for judging. How nerve-wracking!! The photos do NOT look the same blown up and shown on a screen. I realised last night how much I have to up my game... and learn how to use Photoshop properly... I was amazed how much PS was allowed.
All 3 photos that I submitted were taken with my old P&S, and I'm hoping that any new photos that I submit will be better quality anyway.

Very basically, this is how it works...
We both started as a 1 star, and we have to work our way up through the ranks.
There are 3 judges on the night, who judge each photo.
There are 3 categories of photos being judged every evening... slide, print and e-photography. We're submitting in the e- category.

Anyhoo, I got 2 silvers and 1 gold. This is what the judges said about the photos.

Rusty Fence Post - Silver

As Des said, the background was too light. They said that they liked the idea, but I'd let the camera decide on the exposure. I should have made changes (using the multiply feature in PS) like Des suggested, but I couldn't get it right... it became blotchy because I couldn't select the whole area properly.

Bengal Tiger Cub - Silver

It took them a long time to give the verdict on this one. Basically they said that it was sharp, but the angle of the animal was wrong. They would have like to see more of the eye, it's too hidden. And the ground that you can see in the bottom right was "disturbing".

White Lily Stamen - Gold

I was disappointed at how it looked blown up. The white in the lily was too white. The judges liked the sharpness and the angle, but said that the light I'd used (which was the kitchen light) made the colour look strange.
They never mentioned the light flash that you can see to the right of the flower

Here are all the photos that I chose from... http://jentyrambling.wordpress.com/2008/06/09/help-me-choose/

Anyhow, hopefully next time will be better, but I must say, I think I'll be much more nervous next week.