Dubai
The month of November was a great time for photographers. With winter sunsets arriving in the UAE and fog enveloping Dubai skyscrapers, just stepping outdoors provided reader photographers with opportunities for the perfect picture.
One event in particular had people rushing to set up their tripods. On November 14, the moon was positioned closer to Earth than it had ever been since 1948. The supermoon appeared larger in diameter than many people had ever seen in their lifetimes, and shone 30 percent more moonlight onto Earth than usual.
Bill Ingalls, Nasa’s senior photographer, shared tips for lunar photography, on the space agency’s website.
His number one tip for taking pictures of the moon? He wrote: “Don’t make the mistake of photographing the moon by itself with no reference to anything. I’ve certainly done it myself, but everyone will get that shot. Instead, think of how to make the image creative—that means tying it into some land-based object. It can be a local landmark or anything to give your photo a sense of place.”
But getting that shot means looking for the perfect vantage point. So photographing the night sky might take a lot more homework than you’d think. Ingalls said: “I use Google Maps and other apps – even a compass - to plan where to get just the right angle at the right time.”
For those using iPhones or other smartphones to click pictures, he advises getting the right light exposure: “Tap the screen and hold your finger on the object (in this case, the moon) to lock the focus. Then slide your finger up or down to darken or lighten the exposure.”
Try out these tips in your next nocturnal photography adventure. From January 1 to 10, the Quadrantids meteor showers are expected to light up the sky. According to the American Meteor Society, they have the potential to be the strongest shower of the year, often producing bright fireballs, and will be visible to people living in the northern hemisphere.
We asked Gulf News’ twitter followers to pick their favourite reader photograph as part of November’s Reader Picture Competition. Of the four pictures in the editors’ shortlist, 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
Zohaib Anjum works in a real estate company and is based in Dubai.
He took this striking picture of the supermoon rising behind Burj Khalifa. He said: “I captured this image from Jumeirah Beach with my Nikon D500. It was a great experience! I planned this shot, and did a lot of homework by visiting this site twice or thrice to make sure the moon would rise right behind Burj Khalifa.”
Twitter users declared him the winner, with 243 retweets and 253 likes.
SECOND PLACE
Hussain Nalwala is a businessman based in Sharjah.
His winning photograph was part of a picture essay, about the oldest living breed of horses in the world – the wild, white horses of Camargue, France.
He said: “It was a great experience, as we stood in waist-high marshy water to shoot the horses running towards us.”
His picture garnered 32 retweets and 42 likes on twitter.
THIRD PLACE
Naiju Varghese is based in Dubai.
He took this photograph at the beach in Umm Al Quwain. He said: “I was very lucky to get a frame where the three flamingos walked synchronously.”
Twitter user @emirates_hy wrote: “Wow, this photograph is so wonderful. Congrats, photographer!”
Varghese’s picture received 22 retweets and 76 likes on twitter.
FOURTH PLACE
Razin Rafeek is an operations engineer, from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
His winning photograph is from Taif, Saudi Arabia. He said: “This is a bedouin with his camel on the Shafa Mountain, which is very well known for its freezing climate throughout the year. The temperature was not more than 10 degrees Celsius, even with the sun high in the sky!”
His picture received 15 retweets and 12 likes on twitter.
