Our Picture This! assignment for this month was Keep It Steady--Tripods
Only, the idea being that even with modern marvels such as Vibration Reduction
lenses there are some shots that can only be made with the help of a steadying
tripod. Readers responded with images made at shutter speeds beyond any hand
holdable range that depicted motion in ways impossible to see with the unaided
eye, or caught instants in the dimmest light; some even used their tripod to
catch a sequence of images that they later combined using HDR (High Dynamic
Range) techniques to resolve excessive contrast. The subjects ranged from flowing
water to flowing luminescence (in the form of fireworks) and numerous cityscapes
at night. In all, this was one of the toughest to judge this year owing to so
many great entries.
A Glimpse Of Hibernation |
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While ice is water in solid state, Tony White delivered a variation
on the theme by combining the solid and flowing liquid in one
shot, made near Paintsville, Kentucky. He worked with a Nikon
D100 and a 24-50mm AF Nikkor lens; exposure was f/22 at 4 seconds
at ISO 200.
© 2007, Tony White, All Rights Reserved
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Bistro Bella Terra |
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Bob Coates made six exposures over an 80-minute time period with
his Fuji S2 mounted on a Manfrotto tripod, ranging from 1/125
sec to 15 seconds, with all exposures layered and blended in Photoshop.
© 2007, Bob Coates, All Rights Reserved
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Carnival Fun |
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Among the many fireworks shots received this one combined the
burst and fall of the pyrotechnics with a swirling carnival ride,
all caught on one frame by Wendy Sisson with a Canon EOS 10D.
Exposure was f/13 at 1 second at ISO 200 with a Canon 24-85mm
lens.
© 2007, Wendy Sisson, All Rights Reserved
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Damascus By Night |
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Said Sami Nasereddin made this photo of the outer walls of ancient
Damascus, Syria, with a Nikon D100 and a 24-120mm Nikkor lens;
exposure was f/20 at 4 seconds, all of which preserved crisp detail
along with the flow of traffic on the street.
© 2007, Said Sami Nasereddin, All Rights Reserved
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Hong Kong Cityscape |
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The marvel and lights of nighttime Hong Kong are revealed by this
12.3-second exposure made by Kunio Chan. The Nikon D80 with an
18-200mm VR Nikkor lens set at f/10 was mounted on a Manfrotto
3021B Pro tripod.
© 2007, Kunio Chan, All Rights Reserved
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Maple Swirl |
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Although no exposure time was recorded, Mark Morlan's photo
of leaves caught in a whirlpool in Cuyahoga Valley National Park
in Ohio captured the spirit of our assignment. He worked with
a Canon AE-1 Program and a Tamron SP 28-135mm lens on a Gitzo
320 Studex tripod and exposed on Ektachrome 100 film.
© 2007, Mark Morlan, All Rights Reserved
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Byzantine |
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To capture the detail in this dimly lit chapel in Maza, Greece,
Jim Mitchell mounted his Nikon D2X on a Gitzo tripod and exposed
at f/8 at 1/2.5 sec at ISO 100.
© 2007, Jim Mitchell, All Rights Reserved
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Green Vase HDR |
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Michael Grossman made two exposures with his Canon EOS 5D and
15mm fisheye lens, at 1/8 and 1/125 sec, and combined the two
using Photoshop's HDR merge function, which blends exposures
made for highlight and shadow detail into one exposure.
© 2007, Michael Grossman, All Rights Reserved
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Wildcat Falls |
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This classic waterfall shot was made by Bill Sharpton with a Pentax
*ist D and a DA 16-45mm lens mounted on a Gitzo 2220 tripod with
Arca B1 head. Exposure was f/22 at 3 seconds at ISO 200.
© 2007, Bill Sharpton, All Rights Reserved
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The Devil's Son-In-Law |
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This narrative shot by Vincent Capers Jr. depicts, as the photographer
wrote, a self-portrait of him "having a serious conversation
with my other selves about the good book and the good bottle."
Capers shot three exposures with a Nikon D70 mounted on a Benbo
Trekker tripod, then combined them in Photoshop CS2.
© 2007, Vincent Capers Jr., All Rights Reserved
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