Winter Companions - Best of Show Advanced Enhanced - November 2009
Photographer: Mike Stauder
Image Title: Winter Companions
Date: November 2009 - Best of Show Advanced Enhanced
Score: 25/27
Comments from Judges: The tones, composition, and lighting are amazing
Q. How did you set the shot up?
Winter Companions is a composite consisting of six shots plus a photoshop manufactured sun with rays, plus the fog and all of the shadows have been added.
Q. What equipment did you use?
Nikon D-200 with various lenses.
Q. What f-stop and exposure?
All shots were taken either programmed or aperture priority with a primary focus on the element to be used. Thus when shooting skies for example I'm careful not to over expose and often the landscape which I discard is under exposed. Landscapes are just the opposite.
Q. How many attempts before the success?
As with all of my composites I pick elements that fit the artistic conception. I typically use about one out of a hundred shots.
Q. What did you learn from taking the shot?
Compositing is tricky because you never know how the elements will blend. Sometimes they are better than you expect. This was one of those occasions.
Q. What did you learn from the image being judged at competition?
Personally I felt it was a good image and expected it to have appeal. I'm sometimes surprised that what appeals to me might not score very high. When judging, I always look for the "Wow" and put less emphasis on the other elements.
