honorable mention
Doug Stratton united kingdom
Photo © Doug Stratton Stratton
title
Daybreak Dream
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entry description
This is a stitched panorama of twelve long-exposure photos taken from the foot of the walls of the Tower of London. The original file is approximately 150 megapixels, with incredible fine detail. This was taken minutes before sunrise - many hundreds of times photographing this location have taught me that the lights on Tower Bridge are switched off at the moment that the sun crosses the horizon. I had come on this day expecting and hoping for different conditions, but the joy of outdoor photography is having to improvise as the light changes. Instead of a glittering sunrise I was treated to more typical London weather, but with (to my eyes at least) a more interesting and mysterious atmosphere.about the photographer
I have always enjoyed photography as a hobby, and started taking it particularly seriously after I lost my job at the start of the Coronavirus pandemic. I live in an iconic global city, so naturally a large proportion of my work is architecture and cityscapes - and now and then I like to do a bit of street photography too. But my first love is landscapes. Whenever I can, I get out of the city with my camera and head for some mountains. I love the whole ritual: the preparation, the travel, swathing myself in cold-weather gear, hiking to some remote spot and then waiting... for a moment. Waiting and watching the light change on a landscape, with nowhere else to be, just me and my camera. What was once an enjoyable pastime and add-on to my holidays has now become a central part of my life, and a mental health tonic like no other. I found it late it life but I feel privileged to be able to create images that I'm proud of.back to gallery
