Results in for BBC's Wildlife Photographer

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mcds
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Joined: April 7th, 2012, 4:25 pm

Results in for BBC's Wildlife Photographer

Post by mcds » October 30th, 2014, 4:57 pm

Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, with adult and youth awards, is co-owned by the Natural History Museum and BBC Worldwide.

http://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit-us/wpy/galle ... index.html

http://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit-us/wpy/

The mouse, the moon and the mosquito
Powell County, Montana
by Alexander Badyaev

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RobFromRedland
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Re: Results in for BBC's Wildlife Photographer

Post by RobFromRedland » October 31st, 2014, 5:51 am

Now THAT is a cool photo! I only wish I could take pictures like that.....

Thanks for posting it.
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming: WOW! What a ride! - Hunter S. Thompson

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BrianEdwards
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Location: Oregon City, OR
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Re: Results in for BBC's Wildlife Photographer

Post by BrianEdwards » October 31st, 2014, 9:05 am

Cool photo. I think it's a combo of atleast three photos, if not more, merged together in layers
Clackamas River Waterfall Project - 95 Documented, 18 to go.

mcds
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Joined: April 7th, 2012, 4:25 pm

Re: Results in for BBC's Wildlife Photographer

Post by mcds » October 31st, 2014, 3:10 pm

Could be, but the way I read the description it's a single exposure.

The brightness of the blue sky relative to the brightness of the moon comes from choosing a specific day near the full moon with the right amount of sunlight remaining.
Their overall brightness comes from the exposure settings which includes a long shutter. The back-lit mouse comes from an electronic flash. The frozen motion of the mosquito from a short duration flash. That a mosquito was in that position was just chance, or perhaps the photographer waited for that moment.

Alexander was taking his daily hike along a trail in the Blackfoot Valley, western Montana, USA, when he noticed a giant puffball mushroom starting to inflate. Squirrels, chipmunks and mice began exploring and scent-marking the surface of the oversized fungus leaving it covered with tiny prints. Alex returned to the spot during a full Moon, when the puffball had reached its maximum size. He lay on the ground, watching and waiting, entertained by the dozens of small animals exploring the puffball. The most frequent visitors were deer mice, which scampered around, sometimes pausing to check on their surroundings. To avoid disturbing the animals, and to preserve the sense of place, Alex used the Moon as his backlighting. He relied on a long exposure and a gentle pulse of flash to show the curve of the fungus and to capture the frantic activity. When one deer mouse paused for a moment to investigate a persistent mosquito, the perfect midnight puffball scene was created.

Technical specification
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV + 105mm lens; 2.5 sec at f14; ISO 250; Canon 430EX II flash.

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