Picture This

Our Picture This! assignment was “Reflections” and we received many excellent images that took the assignment to the next level. Readers responded with reflections from many possible surfaces, including ponds, glass buildings, metallic objects, and more. The idea was to make the reflection part of an overall composition, to have it further reinforce the design, color, and forms of both the subjects being reflected and the way the reflection warped or made abstract that which was being reflected. Many also resembled collages of many levels of a scene, and allowed the photographer to show us both what was in front of and what was behind the lens.

Holiday Windows

Edmond Hatfield combined many layers of light and subject matter in this holiday window along New York’s Fifth Avenue. He photographed with a Canon EOS 50D with an exposure of f/9 at 1⁄30 sec. © 2010, Edmond Hatfield, All Rights Reserved

Birds Multiplied

The subject and their reflection was photographed to perfection by Richard Harkawik with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II and a Canon EF 100-400mm lens. Exposure was f/11 at 1⁄750 sec at ISO 640. © 2010, Richard Harkawik, All Rights Reserved

Abandoned Structure

Tom Green made this photo at a decommissioned Naval base, thus, as he wrote, the “abused but photogenic look.” Taken with an IR-converted Nikon D700 and a Nikkor 70-300mm lens, the exposure was f/22 at 1⁄250 sec at ISO 800. © 2010, Tom Green, All Rights Reserved

Cubist Cranes

Wendy Wagner made this cubist study in Atlanta with a Nikon D70 with an exposure of f/7.1 at 1⁄200 sec. © 2010, Wendy Wagner, All Rights Reserved

Harbor Boat Reflections

The slight waves in the water made for a painterly design in this photo by George Taylor. Shot in Provincetown, Massachusetts, Taylor worked with a Nikon D700 and a Nikkor 24-70mm lens with an exposure of f/5.6 at 1⁄100 sec. © 2010, George Taylor, All Rights Reserved

Silver Reef

The play of color and light in the canyons of Utah was captured by Larry Gambon with a Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi and a Tamron 17-35mm lens. Exposure was f/5 at 1⁄50 sec. © 2010, Larry Gambon, All Rights Reserved

Window Reflections

The distorting quality of glass is taken to another level in the photo made in Vienna by Warren E. Wilson. Exposure with an Olympus E-500 was f/9 at 1⁄160 sec at ISO 400. © 2010, Warren E. Wilson, All Rights Reserved

Vietnam Memorial Reflections

Robert Welch included both the context and those paying honor at this stirring monument in Washington, DC. Exposure with a Canon PowerShot G9 was f/3.2 at 1⁄125 sec. © 2009, Robert Welch, All Rights Reserved

Alligator Reflections

Ronald Marvin combined a great sense of compositional balance with mood and subject in this shot made at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. Exposure with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II at ISO 3200 was f/4 at 1⁄40 sec. © 2010, Ronald Marvin, All Rights Reserved

Boathouse

On a rainy day in Atlanta Steve White ducked into the boathouse at the Callaway Gardens Resort and was rewarded with a shot that brings us detail into, above, and below. Exposure with a Nikon D3 and a 24-70mm lens was f/8 at 1⁄6 sec at ISO 400. © 2010, Steve White, All Rights Reserved

Multilayered Macro

Anthony Greco made this fascinating trip into the world of macro by using an auxiliary close-up lens on his Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 lens on a Nikon D90. Exposure with a ring flash was f/10 at 1⁄60 sec. © 2010, Anthony Greco, All Rights Reserved

Dock Pilings

Where the “real” ends and reflections begin is part of what makes this composition and alignment so intriguing. Clay Oliver made this shot with a Canon EOS 20D and a 17-85mm lens with an exposure of f/8 at 1⁄200 sec at ISO 400. © 2010, Clay Oliver, All Rights Reserved

Open Bar

This Hopper-esque study was made with an IR-converted Canon EOS 30D and a Sigma 14mm lens by Michael P. Watkins. The photographer even provided us with a reference shot to show his point of view as he looked into the scene. Exposure was f/9 at 1⁄20 sec. © 2010, Michael P. Watkins, All Rights Reserved

Chicago Reflections

One of the most transformative reflection shots we received was made by David Patria with a Sony Alpha 100 and a Sony 18-200mm lens with an exposure of f/9 at 1⁄160 sec. © 2010, David Patria, All Rights Reserved

Route 66 (OK)

Richard Kinler used HDR techniques to add to the illustrative quality of this classic Route 66 shot. He photographed with a Canon EOS 40D and a Tamron 18-270mm lens. © 2010, Richard Kinler, All Rights Reserved