March 1, 2011

February Been there photo competition: black and white

Been there readers have captured their travels in black and white to stunning effect. Here are the best shots of the month

Been There February Comp: Alisdair Jones, Pompidou — Alisdair Jones: I took this shot of place Georges Pompidou in Paris with a tilt/shift lens. Black and white somehow removes the sense of what era the image was captured in. Photograph: Alisdair Jones

Been There February Comp: Sarah Franklin, steps — Sarah Franklin: This was taken on a bitterly cold winter's day on the beach at Crosby, Merseyside, looking towards the docks with seagulls swirling overhead. You can just make out Antony Gormley's Another Place figures on the sand in the distance. Photograph: Sarah Franklin

Been There February Comp: George Turnbull, kayak — George Turnbull: Early in the morning we came across some fishermen on Inle Lake, Burma. The one in the photograph stood out in silhouette, with the mist rising from the water and the early morning light to provide atmosphere and sanctuary of moment. Coupled with the bamboo stakes which hold the floating islands together and the unmistakable temples and pagodas as the backdrop – it was a moment to savour. Photograph: George Turnbull

Been There February Comp: Terry Gibbins, NYC — The Empire State Building, New York Photograph: Terry Gibbins

Been There February Comp: Harry Whitehead, tightrope — Harry Whitehead: Outside a cafe in Goa, a family arrived with wood and rope. Inside 10 minutes they’d constructed the high-wire pictured. The young girl performing was a miniature PT Barnum. She hectored us foreigners into an audience, balanced a variety of vegetables on her head, made several passes across the rope, and then relieved us of our money. With the sun silhouetting her and the shapes and the drama of her performance, it was perfect for black and white. Photograph: Harry Whitehead

Been There February Comp: Hugo Wallis, Northumberland — Hugo Wallis: The photo is of a valley in the Cheviot Hills in Northumberland. I was walking with friends on a Duke of Edinburgh camping trip, standing on the Pennine Way looking into Scotland from England. The ruggedness of the landscape and the clouds attracted me to the scene.
Photograph: Hugo Wallis Photograph: Action images

Been There February Comp: Lauren Meulman, dog — Laurens Meulman: I was on my way to meet a friend in Islington, London. This guy and his dog were in the tube carriage with me and they happened to be in front of me on the escalator at Angel station. I thought it was a striking image, the way he had the dog slung over his shoulder, the dog looking right at me. I asked for permission to take a few snaps. This is one of my favourite pictures and I went to great lengths to track down the dog and his owner. Thanks to a friend (and a lot of coincidences), I got in touch with the wife of the guy in the picture. They both loved the photo and we met up with them and the dog at The Old Queen's Head in Angel to hand over the picture and go for a big night out.
Photograph: Laurens Meulman Photograph: Action images

Been There February Comp: Kate Gare, field — Kate Gare: I think the Tuscan landscape is beautiful, and for a photographer it's as if the cypress trees were planted just for us! I was drawn to this shot because of the juxtaposition of nature and order. It's shot using a wide-angle lens and a converted infra-red Canon that I was playing with at the time. It was desaturated in post-production (as is necessary with infra-red converted cameras). Photograph: Kate Gare

Been There February Comp: Luke Millward, pebbles — Luke Millward: This photo was taken at Aldeburgh, Suffolk. I wanted to capture the interesting contrast of texture between the smooth wet beach pebbles with the slow soft motion of the waves and the darkness of the imminent storm. I used a 10mm ultra-wide zoom mounted on my Nikon D90 on a GorillaPod – to get a low angle and thereby accentuate the depth. To achieve correct exposure throughout the scene I used a 0.9nd graduated filter. Photograph: Luke Millward

Been There February Comp: Matthew, Dawson, bike — Priest in Lucca, Italy. The photo was taken with my Dad’s new camera. I took my mother to Lucca, Italy when he passed away and every morning we sat on a bench high on the banking of the perimeter wall that surrounds the town. On the Sunday morning we heard a distant bell ringing. The coolest-looking priest flew past on his bicycle urging people out of his way. I have no idea what all the buttons do on the camera but I love the picture. Photograph: Matthew Dawson

Been There February Comp: Pramod Kanath, Sea — Pramod Kanath: This shows a beach in the Christmas holidays in Trivandrum, capital of the south Indian state of Kerala. It's an everyday scene in this area that just aroused my curiosity. Photograph: Pramod Kanath

Been There February Comp: Timothy Utteridge, shades — Timothy Utteridge: The Man Mo temple in Hong Kong is a small, almost claustrophobic, place of worship, and I wanted to convey the small size of the temple. The incense coils hang from the ceiling around a central opening through which the light is streaming. I didn't use a flash as I wanted to get a little movement in the smoke; it was good for black and white as the interior is a melancholic and thoughtful place. Photograph: Timothy Utteridge

Been There February Comp: Luke Casey, wrestlers — Luke Casey, runner-up: I took this photo in Kumamoto in the south of Japan. The usually sleepy town of Nagasu has celebrated the hadaka matsuri (naked man festival) annually for hundreds of years. Men wrestle each other around the grounds of a small temple, eventually ending up in the freezing cold sea.

Natalie Mayer, judge: This image has real potential, although doesn't quite hit the mark. The photographer would have benefited from waiting for a real "moment'" rather than just shooting into the scrum. Still, I've chosen it as a runner-up because I like the fact the photographer appears to have got properly close to the action and is photographing something which is culturally interesting, which is important in travel photography. Squeezing himself round to the front to get some of the expressions would have helped, as would including something that would have given us a clue as to what all these fellas are actually up to. Photograph: Luke Casey

Been There February Comp: James Drury, tree — James Drury, runner-up: I planned to shoot something else at sunrise, but on the way this tree standing defiantly in the middle of a frozen field caught my eye. I like the way furrows and the frozen tyre tracks lead the eye around the tree. Sadly, it's almost dead and I can't see it lasting much longer.

Natalie Mayer, judge: This is a pleasing image with good composition, nicely exposed and post-processed. It's a bit of a tired scene though – I've seen countless images of this kind ... lonely tree, desolate landscape, moody sky. Still, replicating great shots in a technically proficient way is great training: the photographer should just be sure to search for more original scenes as he moves forward. Photograph: James Drury

Been There February Comp: Paul Cook, street — Paul Cook, runner-up: I wanted to capture a grittier side of Glasgow, not the usual tourist areas. Venturing into the alleyways and backstreets I eventually discovered this lane and set up the shot in the early hours of the morning. While the main streets were busy with revellers coming out of pubs and clubs, the lane seemed like a different world with so many shadows and reflections from the earlier rainfall.

Natalie Mayer, judge: Technically great; I'm guessing this must be a HDR image. However, imagine the image with a little extra something ... a cat crossing the road, a person lurking between shadow and light, somebody causing a ripple in the puddles ... something of that nature would set the image apart from a being a technical challenge well executed to a great image worthy of a win.
Photograph: Paul Cook Photograph: Action images

Been There February Comp: Angus McRae, boy — Angus MacRae, runner-up: This photo was taken at an orphanage in Tamil Nadu, India. The children were all so excited by the camera – all I had to do was to press the shutter.

Natalie Mayer, judge: Lovely composition and moment. I find the ladies head/eyes at the top distracting – it takes away from the boy. Also, it would be nice to have a bit more of a feel for what is going on and why his hands are in the air, but still, a lovely image.
Photograph: Angus MacRae Photograph: Action images

Been there February: Slawek Kozdras — Slawek Kozdras, runner-up: Two girls fighting the Arabian Sea breeze. I used black and white to emphasise amazing patterns created by their hair.

Natalie Mayer, judge: This image has great presence, it really stood out to me. It would be nice to see a bit more shape to get a glimpse of what the girls are actually up to, but despite this, it's a very striking image and the flying hair invokes a good atmosphere and feeling of the moment. Photograph: Slawek Kozdras

Been There February Comp: David Nicholls, tiger — Winning photograph by Doug Nicholls: A bit too close to feeding time at Kanchanaburi Tiger Temple, Thailand

Natalie Mayer, judge: There were lots of commendable entries this month but this one really stood out to me as being a great image of a very challenging subject, caught at just the right moment. The shot is technically spot on – focus in the right place, a lovely composition, and perfect exposure. The tiger at the rear really adds to the shot, but it would have been great if he had positioned himself so that he didn't mar the silhouette of the tiger at the front (seeing the shape of the ear would have added impact), but we all know animals just aren't co-operative in that way and overall this is a super image that the photographer should be proud of.

Doug's prize is a £200 voucher for Point 101
Photograph: Doug Nicholls Photograph: Action images

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