Congratulations July 2023 50/50 winner Darlene Hildebrandt

Congratulations to Darlene Hildebrandt, winner of July 2023's 50/50 challenge A Shot in the Dark with guest Judge Monika Deviat. Darlene is an internationally-respected photographer and mentor who has been a supporter from the moment The Shooting Range: A Photography Challenge began, serving as one of our Season One Panel Judges in 2021. Darlene has spent the last couple of years becoming a strong ally to the Indigenous community and decided to throw her hat in the ring for this month's challenge with her image Totem Trickster.

Be sure to check out Darlene's website and YouTube channel as well as give her a follow on her socials!

Website | Instagram | YouTube | Facebook | Gallery

Totem Trickster


Here's what Darlene had to say about this image:

In many Indigenous stories and myths, the raven is a trickster – a foolish and childlike troublemaker. He is a shape-shifter and wanderer who can travel between the tangible world and the spiritual world. There are even stories of Raven’s encounters with supernatural beings. “In Haida culture, the Raven is the most powerful of mythical creatures. His appetites include lust, curiosity, and a desire to play tricks on the world and its creatures. He also symbolizes the unknown and is there to show that every person sees the world in a different way as another. He is a keeper of secrets” – Raven Reads. 

Source: https://ravenreads.org/blogs/news/the-raven-in-haida-culture 

For me, the realm of night photography is all of that combined. It’s magical. It’s a symbol of the unknown. The night sky keeps its own secrets hidden in the darkness. As a night photographer it is my goal to capture some of those qualities and represent that symbolism in my images. So the raven sitting atop with totem pole and the star trails in the night sky are perfect complements to one another in my image Totem Trickster.

And here is what Monika had to say about the winning submission:

The composition and inclusion of the Raven Totem with the star trails are very interesting! Overall a unique image, and the star trails turned out well. One thing to try might be to crop out the building on the right or burn it down so the eyes don't get drawn over there as much and instead get pulled back into the trails and the totem.

~~~

We would also like to extend congratulations to our Runners Up (in alphabetical order)

Nicky-Lynn Richards Instagram 

Comforting Darkness

The night falls and blankets us in comfort as the darkness settles in. Earth and sky become unparalleled and the dancing Aurora begins. Gazing up through the tall spruce trees, the twinkling stars appear. There is no place I want to be more, than taking this picture, right here.

This is truly how I felt this night.  

We travelled up a mountain range with our ATV's and 3 dogs. We spent 3 nights in this tent, not a soul around for miles and miles. We harvested fire wood during the day to haul back to our home so we could have heat for the winter. During the nights, the sky was beautiful, colourful, clear and bright, as lady Aurora subtly showed her pretty colours for only a little while.

I love taking pictures of the night sky. My favourite is photographing the Northern Lights because they move and dance so quickly that every single photo is different. No-one in the world has the exact same photo as you, and you'll never see the same thing again. And that feeling you get when you see them, when you're alone in the darkness looking up to the sky...there's nothing like it.

Monika's comments:

This looks like a wonderful place to camp, and the image conveys what it would be like out there by yourself in the night. The light in the tent is balanced well with the dark and stars. The darkness of the tops of the trees creates an imbalance to my eye, though, especially heavy in the right corner. A tighter crop might balance things out a little more, or potentially a portrait-oriented shot focusing more on the open space above the tent through the trees.

~~~

Ward Toma Instagram 

Moonshine on the Goat Ridge 

This image of the Goat Range has hue of blue in it that keeps me returning. Perhaps it was the combination of very cold winter temperatures, clear sky, altitude and shadow that was present when I captured the image that created such a strong memory for it.

Monika's comments:

The layers of the snowy mountain, trees, and shadows are great! The winter scene feel is captured beautifully. Something that could make this image stronger is a tighter crop on the right side. The tree branches pull the eye off the edge and feel heavy to me. Stars look sharp, which is important for a night image.




~~~

Thank you again to our Guest Judge Monika Deviat for allowing us to pick her brain and come up with such a fantastic Challenge for this month. In case you haven't already done so, be sure to check out Monika's work and consider signing up for one of her upcoming workshops. You can find details on her website or through her social media accounts. Website | Instagram | Facebook



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