Gallery Winners

DPA STUDENT GALLERY WINNERS

January 2011 Winners:

October 2010 Winners:

September 2010 Winners:

August 2010 Winners:

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June 2010 Winners:

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March 2010 Winners:

February 2010 Winners:

January 2010 Winners:

December 2009 Winners:

November 2009 Winner:

October 2009 Winners:

September 2009 Winner:

August 2009 Winners:

kim parker

July 2009 Winners:

June 2009 Winners:

© Dave Cordova - Atlanta/Advanced

© Tyler Reed - Denver/Advanced

April 2009 Winners:

© Mitchel Sayare - Boston/Advanced

This photograph illustrates a great use of color, light and composition. Yellow and purple are complimentary colors, allowing the bright yellow lemon slice to pop off the purple tinted background. By back lighting the fruit, Mitchel focuses on the minute details in each segment of his citrus subject. This back lighting provides an inner glow, which can be reproduced in most organic subjects such as flowers and leaves.

In most cases photographers would recommend never placing your focal point directly in the center of the frame, but in this composition it works. Because this images relates more to color placement, the 2 dimensional plane is well balanced. I would love to see more of these types of images; perhaps a citrus series - a lime slice on a red background and an orange slice on a blue background.

I love this shot, John captures this flamingo in a very new and interesting way. As viewers, we are used to seeing flamingos with their necks stretched long and feathered bodies balancing on thin spindly legs. This image captures the essence of this bird in a tight, confined frame. The composition is wonderful, using the folded neck and beak to frame the photograph.

The exposure is perfect, with deep black in the beak and white whites in the highlighted feathers. John's chosen aperture works great for this shot, the bird is precisely sharp and the insignificant background is completely blurred. Overall I believe this is a successful image which showcases a fresh perspective.

March 2009 Winners:

This image exhibits a great use of color. The girls bright red bathing suit is a fantastic contrast to the saturated blue sky background.

Darryl successfully avoided washing out his subjects face by shooting her in the shadows rather than the bright sun. By doing this he maintains details in the shadows as well as the highlights.

The simple composition is a perfect example of the rule of thirds. He gives the frame an open, airy feeling by placing his subject on the far right.

This is a wonderful example of leading lines. The viewers eye follows the winding path of the fence, creating a bee line for the oceanscape's endless horizon. The choppy handmade appearance of the beach fence offers a visually interesting vertical pattern; contrasting with the scenes horizontal lines.

Abe captures that beautiful golden glow during the 'magic hour' when the sun is just beginning to set. This golden tone enhances the overall aura of a warm summer evening on the beach.

February 2009 Winners:

Pierre gives us a great example of why it pays off to change your perspective. He shows a refreshing way to approach a classic landscape. This is a dynamic image with multiple layers and dimensions.

The image melts these planes all into one, creating a perfectly fluid transition from the green trees, to the blue sky, to the darker water. The white coy fish is beautifully contrasted against the dark rocks in the pond. If Pierre had moved at all, the fish would have been lost in the reflection of the white clouds.

This image works so well because it is forcing the viewer to see the world in a way that might normally be overlooked or taken for granted.

The American Bald Eagle is a significant symbol of America and Capitalism. Typical photographs of these righteous birds show them soaring above, with wings stretched wide; but here he looks as though he is posing for a corporate portrait. Carol has captured a great moment here, the animal is engaged with the viewer, appearing serious yet curious.

Not only is this image composed well, it is quite remarkable how close and intimate Carol was able to get. Exposure is excellent, capturing the bird in subtle natural light, avoiding harsh direct sunlight.

Overall a great shot of an American icon.

January 2009 Winners:

This is a beautiful example of how to use space and lines to your advantage. The viewers eye is guided through the image by the rafters over Rafael's head, then cut through the frame along the bright stadium lights and back around through the crowd. Rafael was aware of his surroundings and how each architectural element affected the framing and cropping of his photograph. The negative space is filled with the golden glow of the sunset during that 'golden hour' right before dusk. The wash of color created by the crowd mimics the palate of the sunset above them.

I enjoy the overall aura this image emits; a warm night, with family and friends at a baseball game, it just oozes summer time. Those bright stadium lights allow the crowd to see the players clearly, similarly Rafael captures a sharp scene by using a large depth of field.

This is a great example of a macro shot. By using a macro lens, Alexandre was able to get very close to this hiding frog and maintain sharpness. One must be very aware of their composition when working with a macro lens. Because the image is so tight, every piece of information in the frame is magnified. Alexandre did a good job achieving focus on the frogs eye, while including enough detail for the view to recognize the animal and realize that he is hiding in the dirt.

I love the color in this photograph; very organic and natural. The dark, rich tones of the dirt encompass the bright green frog, giving the feeling that we too are hiding in by the moist soil.

December 2008 Winners:

Stephen utilizes a very shallow depth of field in this image of a bright yellow flower. By opening up his aperture, he shortens the field of focus in the image. By doing this, everything behind the flower is blurred, creating that great watercolor feeling in the background. Although the objects in the background are unrecognizable, their various shapes and colors provide a perfect spring backdrop.

This is an example of when breaking the rule of thirds can make a successful image. I believe that this only works because the multi colored background breaks up the frame. A flat green background with the flower in the center would have been too monotonous and uninteresting.

This is a great informal portrait. By use of ambient artificial light and the existing background Julius is able to capture a humble photograph of this man on the street. Julius uses a wider aperture allowing to his obtain a shallow depth of field, blurring the background but keeping the mans face sharp.

I love the dark shadows created under the man's eyes. It is very foreboding, like this man knows something, like he has seen the world at its worst. His furrowed brow and spiky eyebrows enhance this feeling.

The composition is clean and simple, without distraction from the textured features of the subject.

November 2008 Winners

This is a very beautiful spin on the normally banal image of the New York City skyline. The city is nearly silhouetted against the ominous grey sky and clouds. This creates a very dark, haunting feeling. The fact that the city is so far away suggests that maybe the viewer only understands New York from afar, the idea of the bustling city is dark and cold.

Mark utilizes the rule of thirds in this photograph. The cityscape which is his focal point stretches across the bottom third of the image, framed by the dark water and the cloud filled sky. The composition is very simple, the city surrounded by nature.

Kiva has created a very intriguing composition out of a this simply charming tree blossoming. I quite enjoy her decision to make the image black and white, a refreshingly surprising choice in flora photography. I think this choice lends itself to the fact that this tree just endured winter, and spring is just beginning. Nature is waking up; this image would be beautiful hand-painted as well.

The tonal range and shallow depth of field create several layers to this image. He point of focus is in a center plane, with branches in the foreground and background out of focus. There is a beautiful complexity to these budding branches.

The way Kiva composed the image with a strong V shape created by the branches leads the viewers eye through the photograph.

DPA TOP 20 STUDENT GALLERY WINNERS

© Michael Duff - Philadelphia / Advanced

Michael's images depicts a successful example of a simple composition. He utilizes the rule of thirds when placing his subject on the far right side of the frame; by withdrawing he gives space for the motion. The level horizon line of the sidewalk provides a solid foundation for the movement to pop out of the two-dimensional plane.

The motion of young boy is enhanced by Michael's use of a slower shutter speed. The soft focus magnifies the dynamic swinging of the child's legs while maintaining sharp focus on his still face.

I am attracted to the warm, organic color palette of this image. This use of warmth gives the scene an energetic, welcoming feeling which is very complimentary to the fun and easy going attitude of the playful child.

Digital Photo Academy is pleased to announce the Top 20 DPA Student Gallery winners for 2007/2008! After extensive voting, we have narrowed down the 20 images that caught our eye, and have awarded each student $100 in prize money, along with the honor of a permanent place on our website! Don't fret if you didn't win this time around; all entries from October 1, 2008 and forward are eligible to win in future months. So go online and upload your best images to the Student Gallery today!

Congratulations to all of our winners, and thank you to all who contributed images. We are looking forward to seeing your new images soon!

Here, in alphabetical order, are the Top 20 images and student contributors, along with Seattle DPA Instructor Ken DeJarlais' analysis and tips for each image:

Here is a very good image using only B&W to enhance the mood of the moment. It may have been shot in color (more data to work with in editing), but exposure makes sure that it is nothing more than black and shades of grays.

By placing the “hot” or bright part of the sky behind the birds helps spotlight the key elements of the image. Exposure is just right having no shadow detail and yet not overexposure of the sky; it has the feeling of a gray day.

The focus and aperture setting is spot-on with everything sharp, allowing the soft curve of the birds to help them stand out.

The final touch was the photographer made sure the beaks of both birds were visible and separate from the branches. Very important framing tool that ensured the birds remained center of attention and there is no doubt of what they are.

Finally, the rule of thirds wasn’t as important for this image. Strong adherent to the keep it simple rule and use of leading lines to frame the subject worked for this strong composition.

This photo is a good example of concentrating only on the important element. By showing only the pitcher, in sharp focus using good shutter speed to stop her motion, the photographer forces the viewer to concentrate on the individual. The other elements are included to provide atmosphere only.

The ball is the center of the pitcher’s attention and had to be included to add interest. Is it where she wants it to be? Her expression shows her passion and total focus.

Leaving the batter out of the frame led me to believe it was a warm up pitch - which it turned out to be. The photographer captioned the image: “Audrey is warming up...”

A very shallow depth of field (close to wide open aperture) was used to make sure only the key subject is sharp to the viewer, leaving everything else in soft focus.

Good overall exposure making sure light on her face was just right to allow shadow detail with no blown highlights in the frame.

This image is an example of using perspective to create a dynamic image.

The photographer framed this in such a way that the words "Staten Island" are coming at the viewer. Letters start out small in the far left quadrant and gain size as they curve in to the far right. Focus and depth of field are important to achieve this effect. All letters are sharp and evenly exposed. Notice how the final letter “D” is cropped partially out of the frame with enough of the letter to clarify that it is a “D”. Continuing out of frame completes the viewer’s eye movement.

The other key tool is the color pallet. Exposing properly for this effect brings the sky color down to a deep blue (slight underexposure for entire frame) complementing the sign. The tungsten light has enough exposure to give a nice yellow cast. The underexposed portion, in the lower third of the frame, still allows the viewer to see the person in white. This gives an overall sense of scale.

This image works very well due to angle of view, depth of field and composition.

The photographer used a very interesting “high eye” angle of view. This gives the image of an everyday fire hydrant a unique and interesting way of viewing an object many people see but don’t pay attention to.

Now the photographer added more creative content by using a good setting that made sure that the depth of field (or what is in and out of focus) added value to the image. In this case, all of the hydrant is very sharp, emphasizing texture with the surrounding background elements slightly less sharp.

This image is an excellent example of the rule of thirds. Viewers can see that key elements are in the upper, middle and lower thirds while the supporting elements are properly placed around the image in the left and right thirds.

Finally – color pallet is very simple with shades of red being center of image with the cyan bolt (contrasting color) included, while supporting elements are neutral making the hydrant stand
out.

This image uses many good composition and exposure controls.

The main subject is placed in the right quadrant of the frame giving the direction of travel a strong feeling. All motion is headed toward exiting the image but is frozen in time at the right moment. Placement of the subject in this way makes this a very dynamic shot.

Note the shutter control. Just fast enough to stop the action but slow enough to allow the legs to show subject movement blur.

The aperture setting is small enough (2 or more stops down from wide open) to allow the subject and the texture of the wall to remain sharp enough to work together in a strong geometric design. The bricks complement the pattern of the shirt.

The simple color pallet helps the viewer focus on the subject without any color distractions. Keeping the image in shades of browns and tans with a hint of red in background for added interest.

The expression on the person’s face is an added bonus: confident and serene.

Here is a wonderful example of using simplicity of design and a compelling subject matter.

The main subject is surrounded by vibrant colors. The aperture is set just right to make sure most of the surrounding blooms are out of focus but sharpening as they approach the cow.

Nice use of the zoom lens. It is zoomed out enough to compress the scene and makes sure the cow doesn’t look further away and appear smaller.

The eyes are looking directly at the viewer and are placed exactly on the top third of the image.

The exposure is correct with the light on the face and nice “rim light” around the ears to help define the total shape of the head. Notice that there is good shadow detail on the body of the cow and that the subtle brown shades are very clear with enough highlight detail to enhance the fur.

This shot shows very good shutter speed and aperture control. Note the “freezing” of motion of the swimmer’s hand while the rest of the body is soft and appears to be moving due to the shallow depth of field the photographer picked for this shot.

The water droplets at the same distance as the hand are also stopped and very clear. Not an easy trick. The photographer had to choose a fast shutter speed and then use the right ISO to allow a close to wide open aperture.

The composition is very well done. The hand is positioned in the frame closest to the viewer with the sharp water droplets trailing behind. The elegant lines of the forearm and bicep frame the face at the perfect moment of the swimmer drawing a breath. Notice that even the crook of the elbow is included in the cropping to further define the “total arm”

Exposure is well done with good dynamic range between shadows and highlights. No important shadow detail lost and no overexposed highlights.

This image uses sharp foreground focus with nice soft background to convey the message. Using aperture priority to control the depth of field works quite well.

The overall feeling conveyed is one of sharp contrast between man and nature. I get the feeling of stepping from manmade control into the natural world. Placing the gate in the left third quadrant while the rest of the composition fills the remaining two thirds with only the vastness of an open field helps underscore the statement.

Exposure is very good with nice range from black to white with nothing over or under exposed.

The sharp focus on the fence shows good detail in the rust, barbs on the wire and the painted texture of the post. It is filled with very rigid straight lines while the rest of the frame has a natural randomness lacking any rigid angles.

This image is a good example of using B&W to focus the attention of the viewer on the shapes and structural design.

The photographer simply de-saturated the colors using “Hue/Saturation” mode of the editing software. Using color mode in the camera and converting in editing gives a better range of grays. Color mode in the camera provides more pixel information to work with in post-production than just shooting with the B&W setting.

Notice that the photographer exposed so that the shades of gray in all key subjects are separated from the background.

The curve of the Ferris wheel placed in the far right quadrant of the frame compliments the circular shape of the top of the Space Needle. The perspective lean of the Space Needle creates a nice diagonal from the bottom of the frame through the upper left of the frame.

The photographer also left in enough of the bare tree branches to add contrast and interest in the negative space as well as to further define the off season’s lack of people. This also helps to explain why Ferris wheel is not rotating. Good use of framing to enhance the mood.

This is a fine example of using framing, exposure, and direction of light to make a strong statement.

The photographer shot with the sun in front and to the right of the lens. This has the added effect of lens flare to further enhance the overall haze. The strong sidelight also illuminates the smoke.

The limited color pallet works to further enhance the mood. A slight underexposure of the entire frame keeps the highlights from burning out and bringing out the texture of the smoke. It also brings out the yellowish cast in the entire scene.

The buildings are silhouetted and sharp to give a sense of size to the scene. This also explains the cause of clouds and smog.

Nice finishing touch to the statement is done by framing. The small structures, in the lower third of the frame, are responsible for huge amount of smoke rising far above. This technique provides clarity of the message.

Here is a fine example of capturing a peaceful mood.

The photographer picked the right time of day for this shot. Sunrise is usually crisp and cool as opposed to sunset that is warmer and not as clear.**

The cropping is well balanced. The trees on the right edge of the frame are complete with a nice slice of sky between last tree and frame edge.

The composition is well done, placing the sun behind the background trees, allowing the backlight to illuminate the rising mist.

Notice how the exposure allows the slight ripple in the water to be clear. A too-slow shutter speed would blur the ripple effect. The slight under exposure allows the sky color to be echoed in the water completing the frame. Depth of field is deep - indicating an f-stop of f8 or larger.

It is important to see that the photographer has a clean UV or clear glass filter on the lens. This keeps the image sharp. Shooting toward the sun will create “lens flare” or haziness if the lens isn’t completely clean.

** This can be accomplished at sunset but it is very rare and has to be a very cold day. Best bet is to try this effect at sunrise.

This is a good example of altering the rule of thirds.

The photographer placed main subject firmly in the center with non-essential elements completely out of focus.

The use of a small numbered f-stop (close to wide open) allows for a very narrow depth of field.

The top, left and right thirds of the frame are used to highlight the subject.

Repeating the color of the flower in the bottom of the frame helps balance out the image.

Interesting to notice how well this works since the only part of the image that is in sharp focus is dead center.

Exposure is done correctly - giving nice rich colors throughout. Keeping the background subdued further brings out the main center of attention.

Keeping the color pallet simple (yellows and greens) is the final step to making this image very clean with no unnecessary confusion.

Here is a fine example of cropping the image to bring strength to the main subjects.

The boy and his frog are filling the frame in a well-balanced composition. Note the positioning of the lad’s eyes. He is looking right at the camera, which is positioned, to his right. While tilting his head to his left which allows the viewer eyes to travel across the image to the frog. This creates a dynamic image. A dynamic image is one that encourages eye movement of the viewer. Also the very close crop on the right still includes the far corner of the eye. Any tighter and the eye would have been disturbingly cropped into.

Nice catch lights in the eyes to add sparkle.

Aperture setting is just right. Depth of field is set so only the key subjects are in focus. I suspect a slight telephoto use of the lens that fills the frame without distortion of the subject and compresses the out of focus background to keep a feeling of intimacy.

This image shows an understanding of landscape photography.

The framing technique of using the dynamic clouds above the subject, in the top one and one half third of the frame, adds a feeling of the vastness to the scene.

The image is sharp from edge to edge which indicates a good aperture and shutter speed combination.

The camera angle provides a quaint feel to the buildings causing them to lean slightly away from the photographer - a humorous touch.

The exposure also highlights the window frames in the buildings. This gives the image a geometric feel.

This photo was shot at the proper time of day allowing shadows to add further to the overall depth. It is also worth noting the highlights and shadows have good printable detail.

This is good example of a humorous, well done macro shot.

This effect can be accomplished with a good macro lens or using the macro mode on cameras that have that feature. It has to be very carefully done to have the effect the photographer shows here.

The grasshopper is in the left part of the frame looking like it will spring out of the frame at any second. This adds tension and good indication of freezing a moment in time.

Depth of field is very delicate in the image. Only the total insect is in sharp focus. The texture and muted tones in the rest of the image are totally out of focus, adding framing and perspective without useless clutter. It is important to note that the photographer got down to eye level when making this shot. Any higher and the image wouldn’t be nearly as interesting.

The hue saturation of the insect adds a richness of color that is the finishing touch to making this image stand out.

The photographer used a composition technique that not only captures the dogs, but also places them in an interesting pose.

Both dogs are fixated on something outside the left of the frame. This creates the mood of something about to happen and makes this a dynamic image. Good example of how to capture an exact moment in time.

The exposure is very good with even contrast and no blown out highlights while keeping shadow detail - even in the fur of the nearest dog.

Finally the depth of field is deep indicating an aperture at or above f- 5.6 or f-8 (depending on the quality of the lens). The focus is set half way between the two dogs. This deepens the depth of field making everything sharp from near to far.

This is an excellent example of using zoom lens to make the subject stand out.

The photographer zoomed in to bring the subject to the forefront of the image. Zooming in compresses the scene. The choice of aperture along with focus point allows the emu to stand out while bringing forward the out of focus background.

The background has soft muted color clues that are repeated in the face.

Notice how the head feathers, eyes, and beak are critically sharp. This is an excellent use of the focus point.

The overall exposure is right on the money – no shadow detail loss or blown out whites.

The exposure and choice of f-stop creates good texture throughout this image.

This is a good example of using either the “Sunset” setting in the scene mode or exposing for the sky near the sun.

"Sunset" setting on the camera will automatically underexpose the entire frame, bringing out the color saturation of the sky. You must have good shapes for silhouette blacks if you use this technique. The photographer in this case had nice flowing water and the well defined shape of a sailing vessel.

You can also create this effect by using the exposure reading of the sky above the sun in the area of neutral gray tones.

The underexposure also meant that the photographer had a fast shutter speed and higher number f-stop, which stopped all motion and gave a very deep depth of field.

The focus is crisp. Even the people on board are easy to see. This helps to establish size relationships; the viewer now can understand the distance from the camera and get an idea of the size of the craft.

This is an excellent example of the photographer observing the subjects and picking the right moment to take the shot which immortalizes that second forever. Note the left forepaw of the “snuggling” tiger. It is off the ground and contributes a nice subtle touch making “lean in” body language stronger.

The simplicity of color pallet used is a great example making sure that the subjects stand out.

The correct use of aperture for depth of field ensures that only key subjects are sharp, with nice blurring of background. This is a very strong tool for this image. Shutter speed is spot on for freezing movement.

Cropping is used in this case to appear as though tigers are coming into view by leaving hindquarters out of left part of the frame. This also helps balance the entire image.

This is a nice mood shot. The photographer chose an angle of view that causes the viewer to focus on the sharp waves at the top of the frame. Nice simple composition.

The woman in the bottom 2/3 of the frame creates a smooth complimentary element. She is in soft focus, which contrasts with the sharp focus on the water droplets in the upper 1/3. She is also a soft shape adding a very subtle color contrast to the sharp patterned blue and white water.

The simple color pallet of 3 basic shades of yellows and blues keeps the image uncluttered.

The shutter speed works well to freeze the top wave while at the same time slow enough to allow foreground water motion blur. This is accomplished by capturing the wave at the peak of the crest just before droplets start to fall.

CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN TO ALL OF OUR WINNERS!
HAPPY SHOOTING!