Dubai
Is there a proper time for great pictures?
Apparently, there is! The first hour of light after sunrise, and the last hour of light before sunset provide a golden opportunity.
Called the ‘golden hour’, professional photographers often swear by this time of day. The sun is low in the sky, and creates a soft, diffused light, which works its magic within the frame.
Characterised by a rich, golden hue, pictures taken during this time have an almost dreamlike quality to them.
Gulf News’ Pictures Editor K. P. Devadasan said: “This is the best time to take pictures of landscapes and get into wildlife photography, because you don’t need anything extra to set up and click. The soft light will give your picture a lovely effect. For people pictures however, I would advise finding better lighting, because with portraits, they may have a shadow on their face, and the light might be not be good enough for street photography.”
We asked Gulf News’ twitter followers to pick their favourite reader photograph of the month of September. They retweeted the picture they liked best. The pictures were ranked based on the highest number of retweets. Here, we present the winners.
Editor’s note: Do you want to participate in our monthly Reader Picture Competition? Send us your best photographs, with captions, at readers@gulfnews.com.
FIRST PLACE
Aman Chhabra is a student of the Masters of Global Business program of SP Jain School of Global Management, and is currently based in Sydney, Australia.
His picture is from the Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo. He said: ‘As I was exploring the aquarium, I wanted to capture not only fish in their habitat, but a photograph very different from the rest. I saw some fish moving in shoals, some in pairs and some moved as if they were solo travellers. My eyes soon fell on two fish, which seemed to be moving towards the light. I felt I was underwater as I clicked.’
His photograph received 27 retweets and 25 likes on twitter, landing him in first place.
SECOND PLACE
Thulasikrishnan works at a fire safety and security company in Dubai.
On his visit to the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya, the reader captured this striking image of a lioness. The number of lions in Africa have collapsed by 30 to 50 per cent in the past 20 years, due to habitat loss and increased conflict with local communities. He said: ‘I got the chance to take pictures of wild animals and birds in their natural habitat.’
His photograph garnered 21 retweets and 13 likes on twitter.
THIRD PLACE
Shuhaib Zahoor is a photojournalist, based in Jammu and Kashmir, India.
He said: ‘It was a busy day in Kashmir, as people were getting prepared for the festival known as Urs. I went to the Shah-e-Hamdan shrine to capture some images. There, I found a man trying to buy a book, which contained some of the best tales from the early days of Islam.’
His picture received 17 retweets and 16 likes on twitter.
