Greetings, short story lovers, and welcome to our first semi-final match up for the 2015 Tournament.

Joseph Devon managed to side-step Lu Whitley in the Trap battle to make his way here.

Meanwhile Donald Jacob Uitvlugt dealt a mortal blow to Albert Berg in Battle Death to earn this spot.

Now these two face off in Round 5: A Picture is Worth.

Cameras are fascinating pieces of technology. Through the act of chemistry and optics they capture the essence of a moment. They can be made to lie by the framing of a shot, or they can put truth into clear focus.

Some people are wary of cameras because they fear it could steal their soul. Others can’t get enough pictures of themselves. If a picture is worth a thousand words, than the right camera is worth a thousand stories.

Our authors’ prompt this week is to write a story featuring a camera. This could be digital or film, still or video. They could pick the era, the size, the content, but the camera must be a prominent part of the story.

Who will frame the perfect shot and who will be blurred out of focus?

Let’s find out.

Joseph Devon leads off with “Visible Image.”

Donald Jacob Uitvlugt shoots back with “Snapshots.”

The Clash of the Cameras has begun!

We have two judges that will render their decision next Monday. The third vote comes from you, the readers. We ask that you read both stories objectively, and then leave a comment below or on the story itself. Authors are not allowed to comment on their own stories, but we’re sure they’ll be checking in here. We’ll tally up the totals and announce our champion on Monday.

And remember, if you like one of this week’s stories, vote it up in the new all-time best of list (new stories appear at the bottom).