First-round judging for 2012 british hairdressing awards

The first-round judging of HJ's 2012 British Hairdressing Awards has taken place - here some of the judges tell us what they thought

"Standard has remained high and it is great to see people are experimenting. There were a lot of entries in the Men's category and in the Avant Garde category there was some lovely work too. Hairdressers need to step outside of their comfort zone and use different photographers, from fashion, architecture and film to bring another dimension to hair imagery."

"This is the first time I have judged HJ's British Hairdressing Awards and I found it difficult because it was such a high standard. It was great to see a link between fashion and hair and the many references to fashion and catwalk."

"We have seen a fantastic standard today. A lot of the hair was very well finished, obviously from hairdressers who knew what they were doing. They stood out from collections that weren't executed greatly."

"Today has been very exciting - some amazing images and some that will definitely stay in your mind. They really stood out from the rest. A collection that you remember when you walk away and which makes a lasting impression is what makes a winner."

"It has been a most inspirational day and I have seen a lot of innovative work. People are seeing us as a fashion industry and are being more imaginative with photography and hair. The gap between the good and not-so-good is closer than in previous years. There was a lot of influences from previous British winners which was great to see but people need to put their own stamp on their work rather than copy someone else's."

"I was very impressed with Scottish, Artistic Team and Avant Garde categories, where there was some really beautiful work."

"It is great to see that these awards mean so much to people and they have invested time and money into their collections. Some categories were very strong and it was hard to place the top six, but hairdressers need to ensure they create a good collection of images and don't just rely on one hero image."

"The standard was very high and it was great to see some categories with more entries than in previous years. London was strong and I enjoyed judging Avant Garde."

"I was impressed by how many entries there were especially in the current economic climate. People had upped the ante in Avant Garde and there were some beautiful images - hair was much more couture than in the past."

"For me the most exciting category was Newcomer; there was some strong images and it was great to see so many entries. Southern and Eastern had some lovely images and Avant Garde was beautiful, there were some interesting photographs that were breaking new ground."