From the beauty of tranquility to motocross: We announce our November POTD monthly winners

First place • Little Steps by SIRSENDU GAYEN • Nikon D80

Wow! (I seem to say that a lot here) I love this photo of Sirsendu's! This is another one of those examples where one small element is the difference between good and great (or great vs outstanding :-) In this case, of course, that element is the young monk climbing the stairs. He provides a focal point, a splash of contrasting color, and brings balance and scale to the whole composition. Framing within the image is particularly interesting: Note how the shadowed inner walls echo the shapes of the openings, and especially the way in which they almost create Escher-like figure/ground illusions. They play subtle tricks with your brain, framing the subject and lower stairway in unique ways.

 

Second place • Follow the Yellow Leaf Road by Nicholas • Nikon D5300

This photo from Nicholas is a type of shot you see a lot, usually looking down a road, path, or other landscape element. The narrow spacing here makes this one a little different, and I really like how that works here. (In fact, I might go even a little tighter on the sides, to further emphasize the sense of narrowness and confinement.) One thing that works especially well here is the tonal gradation from top to bottom in the center, going from bright yellow to deep shadow, drawing attention to the "passageway" ahead. Then, the gradation within that part of the image echoes what's above. I love it! I can really see this cut even a little narrower, printed large, and hung at the end of a hallway or in a stairway. (BTW, I was so fascinated by this photo, I Google Image-searched it, and found that it was shot at the Boardman tree farm in Oregon. Maybe a tip for others, for a place to get some interesting shots!)
 

Thirsd place • Launched by Steve Vit • Canon 1D Mark III

This one from Steve Vit gets another "wow" - What a great shot; everything really works together in it. We're not generally big fans of heavily processed images, and this one does have an HDR look to it, but Steve holds it in check, and the slight otherworldliness and odd tonality comes together with the subject and background to create a mood that works very well. If I had more time, this would be a great shot to go into more depth about leading lines, mass in the image, contrasts, etc, but alas, I'm already late on at least three other things. I'll just note the way the spray of dirt behind the bike, the bike's shadow below it, and then what I think is the shadow of the rider, perhaps merging with that of a tree in the center foreground creates a circle of sorts that frames and sets off the bike and rider nicely. Lots of great things going on here, kudos to Steve for getting the shot!

 

First runner-up • Battle in the Everglades by Jose Garcia • Canon 7D

Ouch! A bad day for the snake, but a wonderful composition -- the way the bird's neck, eye, and bill guides your eyes down to the unfortunate reptile, then the bird's eye calls our eyes back to the center of the frame. Really nice shot!
 

Second runner-up • Dance of the Reddish Egret by Bob Jensen • Canon 5D Mark III

While it didn't quite make it into the winner's circle, I'll confess that this shot by Bob Jensen was one of my personal favorites this month. The pose, the crispness of the bird's feathers, contrasting with the blurred reflection, the ripples on the surface of the water, the high-key tonality setting off the bird itself; it's all just great. This shot has a mystical, almost totemic feeling to me, it just draws my eye again and again. Huge kudos to Bob on this. I'd say I wish I'd shot it myself, but I know I'm not this good :-/