“Merced River, Yosemite Valley 2″

“Merced River, Yosemite Valley 2″
© Copyright David Cresine

David Cresine has a lot of beautiful photos of Yosemite in his “Yosemite and the Eastern Sierras” album here on Photobird.com. I especially like the photo shown above entitled “Merced River, Yosemite Valley 2“. This photo was chosen for the Photobird Photo of the Hour. Click the photo to see a larger version.

I like this photo for a number of reasons. It’s clear with good sharpness and color saturation. The clouds in the blue sky complement the earthbound objects nicely. There are a lot of things in the photo that one associates with Yosemite Valley: mountains, a waterfall, tall trees, a meadow, and a river.

Photobird.com is the easy way to share your photos. You capture and share so many great photos on Photobird.com that we created the Photo of the Hour feature to give you the opportunity to share your very best with the rest of the world.

It’s really easy to submit your favorite photos to be featured on the Photobird Photo of the Hour: Simply view the photo from your photo album and click the “Submit for Photo of the Hour” checkbox. There is no limit to the number of photos you can submit and we always like to get new submissions.

In return for each photo we use on the Photo of the Hour or People Places and Things, you get more storage space for your photo album so you can store more photos. Details are here.

If you’d like to keep some of your photos private while you share your favorite photos with the world, you can read how easy it is to do that with Photobird photo albums in our Photobird Daily article entitled “Show Off Your Photos, and Keep Some Private“.

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“A Winter Sunset”, by Vicki Tinnon

“A Winter Sunset”
© Copyright Vicki Tinnon

Winter ended and spring started a couple of weeks ago, but I like this beautiful photo shown above entitled “A Winter Sunset” by Vicki Tinnon. I like the vibrant color of the sunset and how the silhouette of the leafless tree provides an interesting, abstract, and organic shape for us to look at and enjoy.

Vicki Tinnon added this photo to her Nebraska Life photo album and submitted the photo for the Photobird Photo of the Hour. Vicki Tinnon won the Photobird Award for the Photobird Photo Contest for May 2008 with her photo “Moving In“. You can see more of Vicki Tinnon’s inspiring photos in her Photobird photo album at photobird.com/vickitinnon.

Photobird.com is the easy way to share your photos. You capture and share so many great photos on Photobird.com that we created the Photo of the Hour feature to give you the opportunity to share your very best with the rest of the world.

It’s really easy to submit your favorite photos to be featured on the Photobird Photo of the Hour: Simply view the photo from your photo album and click the “Submit for Photo of the Hour” checkbox. There is no limit to the number of photos you can submit and we always like to get new submissions.

In return for each photo we use on the Photo of the Hour or People Places and Things, you get more storage space for your photo album so you can store more photos. Details are here.

If you’d like to keep some of your photos private while you share your favorite photos with the world, you can read how easy it is to do that with Photobird photo albums in our Photobird Daily article entitled “Show Off Your Photos, and Keep Some Private“.

You may also discuss your favorite Photobird Photos of the Hour in the Photobird forums.

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“Snow 9″ by David Cresine

“Snow 9″
© Copyright David Cresine

I really like the perspective, composition, and colors in this snowy, wintery forest scene. David Cresine has submitted many snow photos for the Photobird Photo of the Hour and “Snow 9” shown above is one of them. To see more of David Cresine’s snow photos, read our snow photography tips below and take a look at his “Snow Forest” photo album inside his Photobird photo album.

• Taking Photos in Low Temperatures
• Using Your Camera in Cold Temperatures
• Snow Shots

Photobird.com is the easy way to share your photos. You capture and share so many great photos on Photobird.com that we created the Photo of the Hour feature to give you the opportunity to share your very best with the rest of the world.

It’s really easy to submit your favorite photos to be featured on the Photobird Photo of the Hour: Simply view the photo from your photo album and click the “Submit for Photo of the Hour” checkbox. There is no limit to the number of photos you can submit and we always like to get new submissions.

In return for each photo we use on the Photo of the Hour or People Places and Things, you get more storage space for your photo album so you can store more photos. Details are here.

If you’d like to keep some of your photos private while you share your favorite photos with the world, you can read how easy it is to do that with Photobird photo albums in our Photobird Daily article entitled “Show Off Your Photos, and Keep Some Private“.

You may also discuss your favorite Photobird Photos of the Hour in the Photobird forums.

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1 Week Left: Photo Contest for November

“Before the End of a Day”
© Copyright Chanchal Ghosh

There’s nothing like a good sunset photo, and the photo shown above entitled “Before the End of a Day” by Chanchal Ghosh captures the sun perfectly. As the sun goes down, it changes from a bright white to a radiant yellow color, makes the sky orange, and creates a silhouette of the palm tree.

As the sun goes down, the beautiful sunset it creates marks the end of the day. And even though the sun is going down, we know it will be back up tomorrow. It never stays down, but it will rise again tomorrow, and then, of course, take another trip down. It doesn’t stay down for long.

The theme for the Photobird Photo Contest for November is “Down”. There’s just over 1 week left to enter the contest and to vote for your favorite entries.

Photobird Photo Contest details:

• Free to enter. Enter your photo here.
• Your friends and family can vote for you. You can send them a reminder here.
• This month’s contest ends Sunday, November 30 at 11:59pm Pacific time.

The two winners for the Photobird Photo Contest for November will each receive the following cool prizes:

• Photobird account with 500MB storage space
• 2GB SanDisk Ultra II memory card
• Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson

Read more details about the monthly contest here.

Every monthly Photobird Photo Contest has two winners. At the end of each month, we pick one winner for the Photobird Award, and we will tally your votes to determine the one winner for the People’s Choice Award.

See the previous contests and their contest entries at this link.

Go here to enter the contest. And be sure to have your family and friends vote for their favorite entries to help select the People’s Choice Award. (You can send them a quick little reminder here.)

If you have any questions, please ask in the comments below or in the Photobird forums.

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5 Ideas for Photographing Autumn Leaves

Photo © Copyright Nicholas Below

Autumn is still here which means there’s still time to photograph some great color before the white stuff starts falling.

Here are 5 ideas for photographing autumn leaves, from an article at Beyond Megapixels:

1. Play with color. Just as you would organize family members in a portrait or arrange food on a plate for a professional shot, do the same with leaves and other colorful features in the autumn landscape. Play with different colored leaves and different angles to get the shot you’re looking for. See “Get Closer. Closer. Even Closer!” and “Liven Up Your Camera Angles” for similar composition ideas that will help bring out the color in your photos.

2. Get low. Get down on the ground, on your belly, and shoot leaves as they lie on the grass. Successful photos come from photographers who do what other photographers wouldn’t do to get the shot. We highlighted similar ideas in the Photobird Daily in these two articles: “Do Whatever It Takes to Get The Shot” and “At Close Range“.

3. Don’t forget the city. You don’t need to go to forests and parks to photograph autumn leaves. Look for colorful leaves on sidewalks and city streets. The bright colors of autumn leaves will definitely stand out amongst the gray colors of the city.

4. Leaves on water. Close-up photos of leaves floating on puddles, rivers, lakes, and fountains can make for peaceful shots. Try capturing the ripples on the surface of the water for a dynamic look. If your body of water doesn’t have colorful leaves nearby, bring some with you, as suggested in tip #1 above.

5. Play with shutter speed. You can freeze falling leaves in mid-air by shooting at 1/500-second. This effect will look especially good if you’re shooting another subject in the midst of the falling leaves. Alternatively, you can shoot at a low shutter speed to emphasize the motion of the leaves, similar to photographing fireworks or waterfalls.

More tips for photographing in autumn are in my article “Autumn Photography” which I wrote early in the season.

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Autumn Changes

“Changing”
© Copyright Vicki Tinnon

The leaves haven’t all fallen yet, but they are changing colors. Autumn is definitely here and the trees are in transition.

This very colorful photo entitled “Changing” was taken by Vicki Tinnon at Ponca State Park in Nebraska, and was submitted for the Photobird Photo of the Hour. I like how Vicki got close up to the leaves and filled the frame, a composition technique described in an article in the Photobird Daily entitled “Get Closer. Closer. Even Closer!“

You can see more of Vicki Tinnon’s inspiring photos in her Photobird photo album at photobird.com/vickitinnon. Vicki Tinnon won the Photobird Award for the Photobird Photo Contest for May 2008 with her photo “Moving In“.

Photobird.com is the easy way to share your photos. You capture and share so many great photos on Photobird.com that we created the Photo of the Hour feature to give you the opportunity to share your very best with the rest of the world.

It’s really easy to submit your favorite photos to be featured on the Photobird Photo of the Hour: Simply view the photo from your photo album and click the “Submit for Photo of the Hour” checkbox. There is no limit to the number of photos you can submit and we always like to get new submissions.

In return for each photo we use on the Photo of the Hour or People Places and Things, you get more storage space for your photo album so you can store more photos. Details are here.

If you’d like to keep some of your photos private while you share your favorite photos with the world, you can read how easy it is to do that with Photobird photo albums in our Photobird Daily article entitled “Show Off Your Photos, and Keep Some Private“.

You may also discuss your favorite Photobird Photos of the Hour in the Photobird forums.

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