Rules:

1. Anyone and everyone who is interested in eligible

2. Make an attempt to effectively capture the theme of the week

3. Post your single picture in this thread, and explain what motivated you to take the picture and/or how you feel it represents the weekly theme

4. Some post-processing is OK (adjusting white balance, exposure, color saturation) but let's try to stay away from heavily PP'ed images here. let's try to keep the creativity to photographic techniques and the captures themselves

5. There is one theme labeled black and white, but feel free to post black and white, sepia, etc. for any of the other themes

6. Have fun, provide constructive and friendly criticism, and fire away

7. It is preferable if the picture you post was taken during the week in which the theme is active; however, any picture you would like to post is acceptable!

This week's theme...Wednesday, June 18 - Tuesday, June 24. You may post your pics as soon as you are ready during the above timeframe.

The person who will judge these Week 6 photos is Woof...winner of the Week 5 theme - People. Woof won the theme with the following fantastic photo:

[timbo13]

I took this yesterday evening in a gentle rain that suddenly got much stronger as I was composing this shot



by the way, this is a new technique for me, using flash for this kind of situation. I'm having lots of fun participating in this challenge.

[c13_]

Here's mine...... Hamilton Harbour Front at Sunset

[F-Stop]

Exposure Time (1 / Shutter Speed) = 30 second
Lens F-Number/F-Stop = F4.5
ISO Speed Ratings = 400
Original Date/Time = 2008:06:16 02:05:45 (Actual time is 2:35 AM NST not Atlantic time) but Pentax doesn't have the NL timezone in the firmware(Halifax being the closest).
Focal Length = 20 mm ( DA 18-55mm )

It took a while to capture this image as it would rain heavily and stop throughout the day and nite. I think I eventually shot this picture while holding an umbrella. I was talking to the security guard on duty due to the military/coast guard base and fishing vessels in the area and showed him a few images I already had captured; he was surprised I was able to capture anything in the dark. The picture was taken on the South Side Hills in St. John's on the water/harbor front - he suggested I drive down the road a bit further and between two houses is a steam/waterfall.

Only editing in The GIMP was an Addition or Screen filter and slightly sharpened. There was a street light about 150' away so I had to set the WB correctly to get the greens you see but luckily the camera did it perfectly. You can see the outline of the rail and fencing I was standing behind on the bushes in the foreground.

Sorry for the watermark, I use this image for my website:

[atupdate]

Taken last year at Hocking Hills State Park.



Tim

[mtnbearhug]

This is something a bit different..

I really was facinated by the way the water took on the color of the wood even in the reflection..



Kim

[LaRee]

I haven't had time to go through all my water images from my recent trip to Pismo Beach and surrounding area. But here is one taken June 15 that I like.

[DanLoc78]

On a job site in Harrisburg this week...this was about the best I could do.

Attached Images

 

[woof]

Busy week at work. Literally up all night last night and back at it this morning. Will judge and have results by tonight. Have a clarifying question in to DanLoc...

Thanks to all, really nice work!

woof!

[woof]

First things first. So many good shots! I have to stress that in the end I threw out technical merit - I am not qualified to judge in this manner - and went with what spoke to me. So please, for those who did not make MY cut as expressed below, no disrespect intended. Quite the contrary. You all made it a very enjoyable and difficult week for me!

First some of my interpretations of the theme. To make my job a little easier, I decided to determine if the main subject of the photo was water. I then went through and said... nice fountain (water), nice waterfall (water), nice sunset. Now, not to pick on the sunsets, but I decided that the water, while not wholly incidental, was playing second fiddle to the sunsets. Not all photos were quite as cut and dried. Sometimes the main subject was inseparable from water, but was not water. Sometimes there were two main subjects as one. So this was not easy.

Notwithstanding the above stated interpretation and comments, I did choose the sunsets as my honorable mentions, in no particular order, because - LaRee and c13_ - these are ** GORGEOUS ** photos. My judging aside, both are truly winners.

The one of the SoCal pier in particular speaks to me as I spent 12 years in Southern California and actually attempted this shot at BOTH the Venice AND the Santa Monica piers. I say attempted. LaRee, I think your exposure may be perfect. I could never get that right. Really nice photo and an image that perhaps resides in the subconscious of all Californians... without being cliche in any way.



The Hamilton Harbour Front at sunset looks much like Lake Champlain looks at sunset, and this too is a really beautiful and stunning shot. Moreover it is a panorama I think, and having played with some more recently, I can see that this is an exceedingly well done job of stitching. C13_ if you want to share tool or techniques, I will certainly be all ears. This is an outstanding effort.



Honestly, I could not decide second and third places. Just could not do it. I'll let you decide.

atupdate - I've seen this before somewhere. Here perhaps? Well taken, well composed. Just beautiful. This was my wife's favorite of the bunch. She asked me if it was the photo or the location that is beautiful. I pointed out to her what you, as the photographer, added and she was even more pleased with her choice. Nice work.



tpeace - Trevi fountain is beautiful. Looks to have been taken in early evening perhaps, which must have been a bit difficult, not to mention trying to take a long exposure with people around. The photo is a little dark, but I like that in this case, as it accentuates the lighting used at the fountain, as well as the time of day. All of that aside, it is a gorgeous frame. Great feel, great capture. I want to go back now please...



The winner this week is derius' shot of Thassos Island, Greece.



I hesitated to pick another black and white on the heels of my submission, but this photo seems special in a number of ways, so I can't let that consideration sway the decision too much. Here we have water in the form of the ocean and water in the form of clouds seemingly ready to release a torrent or rain. That impression is lent more strength by the rather confused, dense, and dark waves. I might say they are almost too dark, but this only lends more emphasis to this piece. To me, it seems to be about transitions... the transition from water to land, sky to water, and sky to land. In each transition, there is water. I love the sweep of the clouds from left to right, from land to water. Indeed, the transition from land to water almost seems to show the land as a hard stop... as attempting to repel the ocean. Yet the sweep of clouds seems to irrevocably tie them together. I really like this photograph.

Welcome derius. Great work! Keep them coming.

Everyone else... Great photos! Really. I learn by looking and I really am not qualified to judge any of you. Frankly, I rather just watch, listen and learn. Comments on the rest of the photos:

Tran - Is that the SF Bay? Sure looks like Alcatraz. Not what I would expect to see of SF Bay area. Very nice. Looks like film to me. The colors are very rich, good composition. It makes me want to know more about that place and so piques my interest. On the level of my own tastes, it looks a little over-sharp. Did you apply PP to it? Because of all of the fine detail in the tall grass/plants together with the waves, I would drop the sharpening back just a tad.

RB - Fascinating. I am torn between which is the better submission... the actual photo or the inset! I personally would not have minded seeing the inset at a larger resolution as a non-submission but set-up for the real submission. Good interpretation of the theme as clearly water is the main subject here.

Bruce - I am a sucker for reflections. While this shot does not particularly grab me immediately, it is a good shot and I certain get the autumn feel once I slow down and really look at it. Nicely done. Very subtle.

bigben91682 - Gorgeous. There is something about large bodies of water that I am drawn to, especially when they are remote. I am particularly fond of the gradients in this photo... moving from very deep blue to a lighter blue, with the lightest being just where the sky meets the woods... and then moving back to darker without perfect symmetry. Very pleasing to the eye.

garth1948 - I really like this photo. The form that the water takes when flung in this manner is rather unique. I am not sure that the water is not a little too incidental to the shot. I waver back and forth on this. I guess the deciding factor is that it does seem to make the picture and so is a fair interpretation of the theme. Great colors and action.

daacon... Dave... Also fascinating. Nice sense of motion, great colors. The hint of a rainbow is great! Nice capture.

axl - I've tried such things many times and they never work... for me. I very much like the gradient from bottom to top. What is that? It looks like a daffodil blossom floating on the water.

Workingdog - this is one of those shots I can "hear" and feel. Something that transports me. You know what I mean? I can almost hear the roar and feel the cool humidity generated by the falling water, and even the smell of the water. The landscape orientation is good for this shot, and I like the further detail imparted by the not quite in-focus rock in the background.

Stratman - What can I say. I love this picture. Slip n' sliding is something our boys (including me) love to do on hot weekends. In fact we just bought a new one with inflatable boogie boards. Whooooo... hooo! The expressions are priceless. I love the one eye cocked at the camera on the closer boy. Great action shot and nice interaction with the main subject.

Timbo - gorgeous flowers. Best time to take pictures of them is after a rain. The exposure is different. Everything but the flowers dropped off almost like you were using a lightbox with black background. I'd be interested in knowing how you got that effect.

F-Stop - I've taken a lot of long exposure photos with film and have never had the result that it looked like daylight. Fascinating. Nice effect. I like the composition. Just my preference, I'd crop out the stairway; this would result in having to also crop out part of that tree in blossom which would not be the greatest, but I'd love to see the stream stand on its own.

mtnbearhug... Kim - very nice experimental shot. I am struck by how sharp the image is. Did you change this to a sepia, or is that the natural color to which you refer?

DanLoc78 - Nice wetlands. Would like to see a wider shot of this. Looks quite similar to the wetlands around here.

Thanks!

woof!

[F-Stop]

Yeah, it was definitely a hard place to shoot to keep in so much detail as there was a house on each side. Just to the left and out of the photo by a few pixels was a patio of the neighboring house. I guess I liked the stairs in a way as it makes you wonder if you can climb to the top of the falls. I would have stayed longer to get more shots but the batteries kicked the bucket.

Here's another image I captured just after:

[LaRee]

Congratulations derius. I must say I kept gravitating to your image. It is a very strong and striking image with good draw.
tpeace your image is absolutely perfect to my eye. I kept looking at it over and over and thinking, damn that is perfect!
Tim that is a mighty fine waterfall image. Beautiful.

Thank you Seaain, or is that woof? I'm so confused.
I love shooting under piers. It began in 1983 when I lived by this pier I visited for this shot in Pismo Beach recently. I shot many a sunset there with my Minolta X700 35mm camera long ago. It wasn't near as easy to get the settings right then, I had to note things on a notepad, wait for developing, view the results, match it up with notes I took and try again. lol I am honored to have been mentioned here. Your selections tugged on my heartstrings too. A pleasure to view the work submitted in this thread. Great work everyone!

[derius]

Wow, thank you Seaain and LaRee,

So many great shots, I really didn't expect to win.
I really like the tpeace shot of Trevi fountain it was my favorite.

Congrats to all for the great work!

[axl]

congrats to everybody who played...
especially to the winners, and I could not agree with the first place more...
PS: yes it is daphodill flower on water

[timbo13]

congratulations to the winners! I am impressed each week by the fine quality of the images being submitted to this challenge.

Timbo - gorgeous flowers. Best time to take pictures of them is after a rain. The exposure is different. Everything but the flowers dropped off almost like you were using a lightbox with black background. I'd be interested in knowing how you got that effect.

It was in the evening, shot with a small camera mounted flash, and I lined up the shot so there was nothing behind the flowers for some distance. I'll tell my wife you liked her roses

[Workingdog]

Thanks Woof, for your critique/comments.

"Workingdog - this is one of those shots I can "hear" and feel. Something that transports me. You know what I mean? I can almost hear the roar and feel the cool humidity generated by the falling water, and even the smell of the water. The landscape orientation is good for this shot, and I like the further detail imparted by the not quite in-focus rock in the background. "

You know, whether I win these challenges, get honorable mention, or simply participate I pay close attention to the comments of the judge. When the comments of the judge closely match the reason I chose a particular photo for a particular challenge, as is the case here, I feel that I have been successful.

Great job, everyone!