Close To Home Assignment Winner Patricia Davidson

Congratulations to Patricia Davidson for her photograph, Reflected Light, which is the winner of the Close To Home Assignment! Reflected Light was also the OP Photo Of The Day on December 5th. Davidson describes how she got the photo:

“This Thanksgiving weekend a couple of photographer friends were visiting, so we met up to shoot together. I was anxious to try out my new Canon 16-35mm lens on the beach. I had rented it a few times this past summer and really liked it so I decided to buy one. Since there was a minus tide, I was hoping to capture some nice reflecting pools near Face Rock. I have shot this position many times in different lighting and tide conditions so I knew the potential it had. In this shot, I loved how the sunstar was bouncing off the water in the reflection.

“I often go to Bandon for photography because I live only about 25 miles away in Coos Bay. Bandon always has so much potential with compositions because of the amazing sea stacks, no matter the what kind of weather or tide conditions.  I never get tired of going out there when I need to stay close to home.

“I use Lightroom 5 to organize and edit my photos. I do basic edits in Lightroom and if needed will open in Photoshop.  I bracketed this shot and took multiple exposures, but I didn’t need to use them.  I was able to use the “Shadows” slider in Lightroom to bring out the details in the foreground rocks in the sand. I did take it into Photoshop to remove some distracting foot prints in the sand.  I also used Imagenomic Noiseware software to remove a little noise due to opening up the shadows.”

Canon EOS 7D, Canon 16-35mm EF f/2.8L II USM lens, B+W Circular Polarizer filter, Induro CT213 carbon fiber tripod, Really Right Stuff BH-40 ballhead and L Plate