Our Favorite Reader Photos from the "Dazzling Color" Assignment

 

Sunset at Seljalandsfoss
If Patryk Pulawski’s enhanced image of the Seljalandsfoss waterfall in Iceland during a sunset isn’t an example of dazzling color, we don’t know what is!
© Patryk Pulawski

While it’s true that black-and-white photography presents a classic look that will likely never go out of style, if you want to create an immediate impression with an image, some stunning color certainly doesn’t hurt. This Dazzling Color assignment proved just that. We wanted Shutterbug readers to show us images of a variety of subjects as long as they included a stunning use of color. Photos could include everything from landscapes to still lifes to portraits or action shots. The only rule was we didn’t want dazzling color just for dazzling color’s sake. We wanted it to enhance the subject for maximum impact. And as is evidenced by the six dazzling images we picked as our favorites, these readers came through.

Sunset at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Ed Gwozdz’s luminous image shows there’s more to the White House than just the color white.
© Ed Gwozdz

Reflections
Lamar Bates captured this colorful reflection on the island of Burano in the Venice lagoon. He shot it with a Nikon D300 and a 17-55mm Nikkor lens. It was processed in Photoshop CS2 with Nik filters for added saturation.
© Lamar Bates

Inside a Nautilus
Clyde Roberts was “playing with color lights” when he captured this vibrant shot of a nautilus shell using a Canon EOS Rebel T3i and a 60mm macro lens. It was shot at f/22, 1/4 second, ISO 400.
© Clyde Roberts

Colorful Umbrellas
This photo by Eduardo Seastres is of colorful umbrellas at a street market in Bagan, Myanmar. “The umbrellas are made of cotton and bamboo and are used as decorations at hotels, parks, beaches, restaurants, and houses, which really attracts the tourists,” Seastres says.
© Eduardo Seastres

Birds on the Dock
“This is a long exposure photograph taken on Long Island, New York, at the East Islip Marina,” Alissa Rosenberg explains. “It was taken using ND filters to help increase the exposure time and processed in Lightroom. This shot was taken with a Nikon D7100 and a Sigma 17-35mm lens.”
© Alissa Rosenberg

Picture This! – Our Next Assignment
The Great Outdoors

Outdoor photography is a favorite with readers so expect this to be a competitive assignment. But before you start uploading every sunset you’ve shot at Yosemite, keep in mind that we’re not only looking for something beautiful, we’re looking for something different. And keep your mind open for what you consider to be “The Great Outdoors.” We’re looking for everything from images of the majestic wonder in Denali National Park in Alaska, to the delicate pink-hued skies of Key West, to a stunning vista as seen right from your backyard. Most importantly, remember to keep the “great” in the Great Outdoors with your photography submissions for this assignment.

Blue Mountains
I shot this image of the area surrounding Mount Hood in Oregon just before sunset, with the darkening sky casting blue shadows over the hills. I had just taken a rather harrowing, windy ride in a desolate chairlift to the top of Mount Hood and decided to walk down rather than hop back on the chairlift for the return trip to the base lodge. It was a wise decision because I was able to shoot the rolling terrain from a unique vantage point at an interesting time of day. (And it was also far more pleasant than getting back on that swaying chairlift!) This image was captured with a Sony A7R II mirrorless camera at f/5, ISO 100, 137mm, 1/1600 second.
© Dan Havlik

How To Submit Online
1. Go to www.shutterbug.com and register. Scroll down the page and on the right side you will see a box for entering your username and your password. If you have already registered and/or submitted images for the Galleries you can skip this step. Respond to the activation e-mail. Registration is free. You will use your username and password whenever you visit or, with some systems, it will automatically load for you when you visit www.shutterbug.com.

2. Check the assignment and closing dates in the magazine. When the magazine is printed we will create an appropriate gallery for your images. The limit is two images per assignment.

3. Select and prepare your images. We only accept files at a maximum 5MB size, JPEG format. Save the JPEG at a quality level of 10 or higher. Note that file size in your image folder directory will determine upload size, not the “opened” file size, as JPEG compresses at 1:4 at higher quality ratings. If your images do not load it probably means you have exceeded the file size or have not used JPEG format.

4. Click on the Galleries tab on the homepage. In the Category section use the drop-down menu to select the Picture This! assignment. Note that images are simultaneously loaded into the assignment category as well as your own personal gallery. When the Picture This! assignment deadline date has lapsed the assignment gallery will be removed, but your images will still reside in your own gallery.

5. In the Description box add title, camera, lens, exposure information, and your full name. Also add any other comments or anecdotes you think relevant. We reserve the right to edit comments as needed.

6. Click the Save button at the bottom of the page. This uploads the image.

7. You retain copyright on the image.

8. We will choose the images after close of the due date.

9. Please feel free to comment on images submitted by other readers.

Please Note: If the photograph includes a minor or a recognizable individual or group you are guaranteeing that you have a signed model release form, and especially a parental or guardian release form for minors. You should keep a copy of that release in your files. Scan that release and keep it handy. If an image is chosen for publication, failure to provide a form when requested will eliminate the image from consideration. You can find release forms at http://asmp.org/tutorials/model-release-minor-child.html and other resources on the Internet. By uploading images you attest that the model release form is valid, that any depiction of a person is with their consent, that you have a model release form available on request, and that all images you submit have been made by you.

Scorecard
Deadline for submission: October 1, 2016.
Images will appear in our January 2017 issue.

Our next topic: Street Photography & Urban Landscapes
Deadline: November 1, 2016
Publication Date: February 2017

Please Note: By submitting you agree to give us the right to show the image(s) on the web and for publication. You give us publication rights in the magazine and on the website(s) of TEN: The Enthusiast Network, LLC.

Want to see images selected for past picture this! Assignments? Go to www.shutterbug.com and click on picture this! In the “more articles…” box on the homepage.

If you have any questions or problems e-mail us at editorial@shutterbug.com with Picture This! in the subject line.

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