March image of the month

And here we go! Last month it was tough to decide on the runner up photos and the winner was easy. This month the competition for winner was brutal. I was even contemplating declaring a tie, but no. I decided my rule for image of the month is there can be only one. Plus a couple of runner up photos if it seems appropriate.

Even that is giving me a tough time. Now I've sorted out the winner, but that leaves the other choice as first runner up, and 3 others to choose between.

Here we go!

The LRT was shot on equinox day. It should be no surprise the light was amazing, even though for some shots I couldn't see any of the info the camera normally shows me. This was one of several shots almost completely blinded by the sun. I just kept shooting as the LRT rumbled past, and it took several LRT's to get it right. I'm printing this one for myself, though I haven't decided where exactly to put it yet. I thought the high resolution JPEG showed more details but the TIFF blew me away.

Yes, the morning sun did brighten up the trees somewhat, but I've taken a bit of creative license in tweaking the scene to match my visualization of what it *should* look like. I sent it to a trusted buddy to ask if it was too much, and the response was "I want a print." It looks even nicer as a ginormous TIFF file.

And, the envelope please!

This is the first abstract I really like. No, I'm not going to tell you what you would have seen if you were standing there with me. I'm getting this one printed as well. It will be 10 x 16 on paper, though I was torn about going to canvas. Then again, another buddy wants to see it in print, and might pony up. Then I'll get one done on canvas, maybe 30 x 48.

And there, the excitement is over for another month. What's that you say? You're curious about the other two contenders? You'll have to look here and here, and decide yourself which is IOTM quality.

I'm currently reading Macro Photography for Gardeners and Nature Lovers, by Alan L. Detrick. I am so excited and can't wait till the flowers start coming out of the ground. The book has given me several ideas for things to try, a bunch of technique tips, and some insight on what is possible. I want to go shoot RIGHT NOW, but wait, it's snowing and raining. I guess I'll have to wait a few minutes.