The Results Are In

The Results Are In

I recently hosted a contest, "Action," in which participants were given the opportunity to submit images or paintings that conveyed a sense of action or movement. 433 pieces of artwork were submitted by 229 members. 2nd and 3rd place winners received an announcement on Social Media. The prize for first place is this feature on my blog! There were four joint winners for first place.

Mark A. Brown submitted his amazing image, Me Me Me, depicting a barn swallow swooping in to feed its young. It was a spontaneous capture from his back deck in Marion, Iowa.

"I was sitting outside on my deck having a coffee. We had a brief morning rain and the sun started to emerge from the clouds. Not long after, the adult swallows began flying close to the deck - doing acrobatic maneuvers and capturing mosquitoes. Several juvenile swallows settled onto the deck railing, with beaks open, begging to be fed. I quickly retrieved my camera and began shooting as many shots as I could. The swallows did not appear to be threatened by my presence," says Mark.

Mark is a talented photographer who is inspired by the night sky, nature and still life.

Joe Schofield submitted his epic shot, Catch Me. It was shot at the Wedge, a well known body surfing locale in Southern Calif at the Balboa peninsula.

"I will go to The Wedge to shoot when it is breaking. On occasion it will break 20+ feet at the face," says Joe.

Residing in San Pedro, Joe says he is inspired by the creative process with RAW images. "I am drawn to the ocean, the desert and my garden for subject matter," he says.

Joy McAdams is another joint winner for her image, Yikes!, shot in Kootenay Lake, British Columbia, Canada.

"I did go out looking for this shot, or that of eagles/osprey catching fish. There is a creek where salmon gather to spawn every fall near where I live. At the mouth of it where it empties into the lake is quite shallow and plentiful of fish, Easy pickings for wildlife looking for their next meal but you often see squabbles over territory and fishing rights. Such was the case in this image. The really interesting thing about this photo is that it was taken with a friend's loaner equipment, all very unfamiliar to me. Needless to say, I upgraded my set-up shortly afterward," says Joy.

Joy is inspired by nature but doesn't like to limit herself. "I am compelled to shoot landscapes, atmospheric events, wildlife, macro. At the same time, there is nothing I love more than to capture human expression and feelings," says Joy. "I can’t give a definitive answer - I suppose it is my Pisces personality coming to the forefront," she add. Yes, I can completely relate, I'm a Pisces too! (And left handed!)

Finally, we have Andrea Spritzer's The Vertical Hold, shot in Matlacha, Florida. The image depicts an Osprey with its catch of the day. What a shot!

According to Andrea's bio, she says, "Photography is a wonderful/amazing way to 'escape' the difficulties of each day. I am a naturalist, therefore, I do not use Photoshop of any kind, and don't even own it. What you see with my photos is what you get."

Andrea lives in Venice, Florida.

And that's a wrap! Thank you to all who participated in the Action contest. Until next time...