If you’ve got a photographer’s eye, today’s smartphones certainly won’t hold you back from taking incredible photos. The winners of the 12th annual Mobile Photography Awards prove that the best camera truly is the one you’ve got with you.
Dinosaurs among us may remember when mobile phones started getting cameras around the turn of the millennium. It looked like such hubris stuffing these not-even-a-megapixel digital cameras into phones with screen resolutions even smaller. Nokia’s first crack at a cameraphone in 2001, for example, was the 7650, which would take you a terrible 640 x 480 picture, and then show it to you on a 176 x 208-pixel screen.
Clearly, things have moved along just a tad. With today’s smartphones, everyone’s got a monster of a digital camera in their pocket at all times. The result has been an utter decimation in camera sales, which peaked around 2010 and have since plunged a staggering 93%. The overwhelming majority of photos are now taken on mobile devices, so it’s just as well that the hardware is now so damn good.
Old Mate – first place, Portraits / Self Portraits
Glenn Homann
“Mobile photography has come a long way, and it is exciting to see the quality of the images that can be created with just a smartphone,” says Daniel Berman, Founder of the Mobile Photography Awards. “The Mobile Photography Awards are a testament to the power of this medium, and we are thrilled to be a part of it.”
Across 12 categories, including an “Artificial Intelligence” category as well as more traditional areas like Landscapes, Travel, Architecture, Street Photography and more creative designations like Silhouettes and The Darkness / Noir, judges attempted to highlight the unique “accessibility, immediacy and portability” of mobile devices in their selections from a record number of international entries.
The overall winner for 2023 is Glenn Homann of Australia, who mainly shoots on iPhone and submitted a broad portfolio of works highlighting his talents in several different areas.
“Oh wow,” stated Homann, “I’m blown away. This recognition means a lot to me, and I hope it will inspire others to explore the endless possibilities of mobile photography.”
Miners of Ijan Volcano – first place, travel/transportation
Chen Lin
Jump into the gallery to see all this year’s winners, plus Homann’s entire portfolio of submitted works.
A picture of a crocodile swimming through the mud at the Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe has been selected as the grand prize winner of the 2022 World Nature Photography Awards (WNPA), which honoured the most evocative shots from thousands of entries in a variety of categories.
Titled ‘Danger in the Mud’, the picture, which also claimed gold in the ‘Animal Portraits’ category, shows a cleverly disguised crocodile in Zimbabwe’s Mana Pools National Park.
The German photographer learned of his win while on location in Botswana and said he was thrilled about his victory.
From a satellite phone, he shared a bit about the story behind the winning photograph.
“This photograph is the result of my staking out the largest pool in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe, at a time when an extended drought had reduced the pool to rapidly drying mud. I had to be very careful not to disturb the crocodile, even though it was buried in dry mud. They will launch themselves with tremendous speed and power at any animal foolish enough to come too close.”
Cullmann also explained why the hot temperatures cause the crocodile to cover itself in mud.
“During the dry season, temperatures can reach 45 degrees Celsius and crocodiles will attempt to reduce their body temperature by burying themselves in mud. A giant crocodile such as this one could survive submerged for months without eating, by living off its fat reserves. This is a process known as aestivation.”
The competition has 14 categories that explore wildlife and the natural world.
The 2023 awards are now open for entry to all photographers who think they have what it takes to be the best.
The annual World Nature Photography Awards (WNPAs) was founded on the belief that ‘photography can influence people to see the world from a different perspective and change their own habits for the good of the planet’.
The 2022 edition of the contest saw thousands of entries flood in from 45 countries across six continents, but one picture proved the clear winner for the judges, earning German photographer Jens Cullmann the title of World Nature Photographer of the Year and the £834 ($1,000) grand prize.
In addition Cullmann’s ‘striking’ winning photograph, other prize-winning photographs include a shot of an elephant attempting to hide behind a tree in South Africa, a powerful picture of a storm-cloud swirling over Iowa and a mesmerising image of the night sky taken from inside an Icelandic glacier.
Adrian Dinsdale, the co-founder of the WNPAs, said: “We congratulate all our winners and offer our deepest thanks for capturing such spectacular images of our precious planet. Once again, we hope it provides great motivation to us all to do everything we can to protect the Earth for future generations.
Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).
And unlike, for example, the Eiffel Tower, its appearance is not going to change drastically based on lighting. Moon shooting typically only happens at night, and Samsung’s processing falls apart if the moon is partially obscured by clouds.
One of the clearest ways Samsung’s processing fiddles with the moon is in manipulating mid-tone contrast, making its topography more pronounced. However, it’s clearly also capable of introducing the appearance of texture and detail not present in the raw photo.
Samsung does this because the Galaxy S21, S22, and S23 Ultra phones’ 100x zoom images suck. Of course they do. They involve cropping massively into a small 10-MP sensor. Periscope zooms in phones are great, but they are not magic.
Credible Theories
Huawei is the other big company accused of faking its moon photos, with the otherwise brilliant Huawei P30 Pro from 2019. It was the last flagship Huawei released before the company was blacklisted in the US, effectively destroying its phones’ appeal in the West.
Android Authority claimed the phone pasted a stock image of the moon into your photos. Here’s how the company responded: “Moon Mode operates on the same principle as other master AI modes, in that it recognizes and optimizes details within an image to help individuals take better photos. It does not in any way replace the image—that would require an unrealistic amount of storage space since AI mode recognizes over 1,300 scenarios. Based on machine learning principles, the camera recognizes a scenario and helps to optimize focus and exposure to enhance the details such as shapes, colors, and highlights/lowlights.”
Familiar, right?
You won’t see these techniques used in too many other brands, but not for any high-minded reason. If a phone does not have a long-throw zoom of at least 5x, a Moon mode is largely pointless.
Trying to shoot the moon with an iPhone is difficult. Even the iPhone 14 Pro Max doesn’t have the zoom range for it, and the phone’s autoexposure will turn the moon into a searing blob of white. From a photographer’s point of view, the exposure control of the S23 alone is excellent. But how “fake” are the S23’s moon images, really?
The most generous interpretation is that Samsung uses the real camera image data and just implements its machine learning knowledge to massage the processing. This could, for example, help it to trace the outlines of the Sea of Serenity and Sea of Tranquility when attempting to bring out a greater sense of detail from a blurred source.
However, this line is stretched in the way the final image renders the position of the Kepler, Aristarchus, and Copernicus craters with seeming uncanny accuracy when these small features are not perceptible in the source. While you can take an inference of where moon features are from a blurry source, this is next-level stuff.
Still, it’s easy to overestimate how much of a leg up the Samsung Galaxy S23 gets here. Its moon photos may look OK from a glance, but they are still bad. A recent Versus video featuring the S23 Ultra and Nikon P1000 shows what a decent sub-DSLR consumer superzoom camera is capable of.
A Question of Trust
The furor over this moon issue is understandable. Samsung uses lunar imagery to hype its 100x camera mode and the images are, to an extent, synthesized. But it has really just poked a toe outside the ever-expanding Overton AI window here, which has directed phone photography innovation for the past decade.
Each of these technical tricks, whether you call them AI or not, was designed to do what would have been impossible with the raw basics of a phone camera. One of the first of these, and arguably the most consequential, was HDR (High Dynamic Range). Apple built HDR into its camera app in iOS 4.1, released in 2010, the year of the iPhone 4.
The paradoxical work of acclaimed fashion photographer Rodney Smith will appear in a brand new book by Getty Publications. Rodney Smith: A Leap of Faith is a collection of more than 200 photos, many of which have never been seen before from Smith’s hugely successful 45-year career.
Born and raised in New York, Smith started his career as a photo essayist but he found success as a fashion photographer. Carving a niche that blurred the lines between fashion and fine art, Smith’s approach to photography was fun, free-spirited, funny and grounded in feeling. As a regular contributor to The New York Times and Vanity Fair, Smith was no stranger to seeing his work in glossy magazines and by brands such as Ralph Lauren and Paul Stewart.
• Check out the best film cameras (opens in new tab), classic SLRs that are still popular today
Plate 110 – Reed Leaping Over Rooftop (Image credit: Rodney Smith • Getty Publications)
Plate 132 – Saori on Sea Plane Wing (Image credit: Rodney Smith / Getty Publications)
Smith shot entirely on film using a Leica M4, a Leica M6 (opens in new tab) and a medium format Hasselblad with an 80mm lens. Almost all his portraits were lit with natural light, preferring to work with his surroundings, although Smith did occasionally enlist the help of constant light.
Getty Museum Curator, Paul Martineau describes Smith’s work as, “like Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, his photographs lead us down the rabbit hole to a fantastical place that is just beyond our reach but one intended to inspire us to be better versions of ourselves.”
Figure 1 – Twins in Tree (Image credit: Rodney Smith • Getty Publications)
Plate 63 – Skyline, Hudson River, New York, 1995 (Image credit: Rodney Smith • Getty Publications)
Plate 41 – Self-Portrait with Leslie (Image credit: Rodney Smith • Getty Publications)
Smith’s photographs are accompanied by a weaving, historical essay written by Martineau covering Smith’s introduction to photography and how his career evolved. Rebecca A Senf, the chief curator at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona, Tucson has also provided a technical assessment of his work, exploring his exact processes and how he used photography as a way of connecting to people.
Rodney Smith: A Leap of Faith is a celebration of the late photographer’s life and career, and will be available to buy from May 16 for $65 / £55 (Australian pricing to be confirmed). The 248-page, hardcover book includes 224 images and direct insight into this prominent photographer’s life.
Pre-order at Amazon US (opens in new tab) Pre-order at Amazon UK (opens in new tab)
Front cover Rodney Smith: A Leap of Faith(Image credit: Rodney Smith / Getty Publications)
If you want to shoot like Rodney Smith, check out the best Leica cameras (opens in new tab) and the best Hasselblad cameras (opens in new tab). Our guide to the best books on photography (opens in new tab) will also point you towards other great volumes on great photographers.
Japanese macaques, Awaji Island, Japan, Gold winner, Behavior mammals category: These monkeys form … [+] huddles consisting of up to many individuals. It begins with a mother and baby cuddling. Other females and young males then join in, as well as other cuddling groups. Here, a rare moment during the lactation season when three pairs of monkeys formed a huddle after grooming. Most Awaji monkeys are non-aggressive and when they are raising their babies, mothers create individual communities that have no social hierarchies.
Photo: Hidetoshi Ogata, Japan – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
From the furry to the tender and the scary, the images of nature that won this year’s World Nature Photography Awards (WNPA) capture spectacular moment of life on our precious and endangered planet.
A mud-caked crocodile surveying his surroundings with a piercing yellow eye at Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe by German photographer Jens Cullmann won the top $1,000 prize.
Crocodile, Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe, Gold winner, animal portraits and grand prize winner.
Photo: Jens Cullmann, Germany – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
“This photograph is the result of my staking out the largest pool in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe, at a time when an extended drought had reduced the pool to rapidly-drying mud,” Jens Cullmann explains.
“I had to be very careful not to disturb the crocodile, even though it was buried in dry mud. They will launch themselves with tremendous speed and power at any animal foolish enough to come too close.”
During the dry season, temperatures can reach 45 degrees Celsius and crocodiles will attempt to reduce their body temperature by burying themselves in mud. A giant crocodile such as this one could survive submerged for a month without eating by living off its fat reserves. This is a process known as aestivation.
MORE FROM FORBESWorld Nature Photography Awards: 20 Stunning Winning ImagesBy Cecilia Rodriguez
The overall winner and the gold, silver and bronze winners of the various categories were chosen from thousands of entries submitted from 45 countries across six continents.
“When great science and great art combine, amazing things can be achieved,” the organizers said.
“We congratulate all our winners and offer our deepest thanks for capturing such spectacular images of our precious planet,” said Adrian Dinsdale, co-founder of WNPA. “Once again, we hope it provides great motivation to us all to do everything we can to protect the Earth for future generations.”
Upon announcing the winners, WNPA officially opened the call for entries for this year.
The World Nature Photography Awards were founded in the belief that we can all make small efforts to shape the future of our world in a positive way and that photography can influence people to see the world from a different perspective and change their own habits for the good of the planet.
From landscape photography to animals in their habitats, photojournalism and humans’ interaction with nature, there are 14 categories in the contest that is free to enter.
See all the winning images here.
Animal portraits
Bison, Canyon Junction, Yellowstone National Park, Montana, USA, Silver winner. Portraits category.
Photo: Mike Darter, U.S – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Seaweed blenny, Blue Heron Bridge in Riviera Beach, Florida, Bronze winner Portraits category.
Phoro: Andre Johnsom U.S – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Behavior: Mammals
African Savannah Elephant, Marakele National Park, Limpopo, South Africa, Bronze winner, Behavior: … [+] Mammals category.
Staffan Widstrand, Sweden – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
An African Savannah Elephant, Loxodonta africana, camouflaging itself behind a too-small bush at Marataba Private Reserve, Marakele National Park in Limpopo, South Africa.
The elephant stepped in behind the bush in an apparent attempt to hide itself from Widstrand’s car. The car stopped so the passengers could watch and the animals seemed to realize its cover had been blown. It walked calmly away.
These elephants are endangered, according to the IUCN Red List.
Behavior: Amphibians and reptiles
Ride on you, Japanese stream toad, Owase Mountains, Mie, Japan, Gold winner, Behavior: Amphibians … [+] and reptiles category.
Photo: Norihiro Ikuma, Japan – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
The Japanese stream toad lives deep in the mountains of Owase in Mie, Japan, and only comes down from the mountains to the river when it is time to spawn.
Behavior: Birds
I’m Coming for You, Male Hooded Merganser, Huntley Meadows Park, Alexandria, Virginia, Gold winner, … [+] Behavior: Birds category
Photo: Charles Schmidt, U.S – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
A male Hooded Merganser takes flight, heading directly at the photographer. “I had been watching a pair of Hooded Mergansers in anticipation of them taking off,” Charles Schmidt recalled. “Ducks will often begin swimming more quickly when they are preparing to fly.”
Photo: Tamas Aranyossy, Hungary – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Behavior: Invertebrates
The ghost of the rocks, Red crab, La Gomera Island, Spain, Gold winner, Behavior: Invertebrates … [+] category
Photo: Javier Herranz Casellas, Spain, WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
A red crab in La Gomera Island, Spain, appears surrounded by a thin curtain of water produced by the waves of the sea when it hits the rocks where it searches for the small crustaceans and plants it feeds on.
Black and White
Thankfulness, Lesser Antillean Iguana, Grenada Island, West Indies, Gold winner, Black and white … [+] category
Photo: Alain Enoult, France – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
The blessing, Elephants in Savuti, Botswana, Bronze winner, Black and white category
Photo: Jules Oldroyd, UK – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Nature art
Underwater colorful snowstorm, Spawning coral Red Sea, Gold winner, Nature art category
Photo: Tom Shlesinger, Israel – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Corals are animals and this is how they reproduce to create new generations of baby corals.
Usually, at the exact same time, thousands of corals of a given species along hundreds of kilometers of the reef reproduce by spawning egg-and-sperm bundles together into the open sea. These bundles will be carried away by the currents, mixing in the water until they finally encounter a match. A sperm will fertilize an egg and new life will be created.
Yet, catching coral spawning is tricky business as it usually happens only once a year, in a certain month on a specific night of the month and at a certain hour of the night for a very short window of only a few minutes.
In this photo, a close up of a branching coral spawn pinkish egg-and-sperm bundles.
Red spider mites, Cooch Behar, India, Silver winner, Nature art category
Photo: Anirban Dutta, India – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
This is a unique presentation of Red Spider mites. “I found these mites in my backyard during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown period,” said Anirban Dutta. “These are very tiny in size, approximately 1-2 millimeters, and make a silky web net to escape from predators.
As macro photographer, I have always tried to search and show the unique and unseen small world. This is a multiple exposure shot. I have taken fuve shots in different angles and merged them into one.”
On their way to Mars, Flamingos Lake Magadi, Kenya, Bronze winner, Nature art category
Photo: Silke Hullman, Germany – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Underwater
Harlequin shrimps Hymanocer, Lembeh Strait, Indonesia, Gold winner, Underwater category
Adriano Morettin, Italy – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
A couple of Harlequin shrimps, Hymanocera picta, photographed with the snoot on the blue sea-star Linkia laevigata in Lembeh strait, Indonesia.
Caviar, Male Eastern Gobbleguts carrying eggs in his mouth, Sydney, Australia, Silver winner, … [+] Underwater category
Photo: Talia Greis, Australia – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Pygmy seahorse Arborek Island, Raja Ampat, Indonesia Bronze winner, Underwater category
Photo: Juho Karhu, Finland – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Plants and fungi
Tree of Life, Eucalyptus, Mount Barker, Western Australia, Gold winner, Plants and fungi category
Photo: Julie Kenny, Australia – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
“The tree is seen as a sacred symbol, which carries significant meanings in both religious and spiritual philosophies,” said Julie Kenny. “From above, the surrounding sheep tracks combined with the fallen tree reminded me of the Tree of Life. While the aerial perspective focuses on the earth, you can see the pooled water in the sheep tracks reflecting hints of blue from the sky and communicating the interconnection of all things, beginnings and endings, the cycling of life.”
Photo: Antonio Coelho, Portugal – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Planet Earth’s landscapes and environments
Grand Teton Peaks, Wyoming, Gold winner, Planet Earth’s landscapes and environments category
Photo: Jake Mosher, U.S – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
“On June 17th, 2021, I hiked, snowshoed, and climbed to the 11,000-foot summit of Wyoming’s Table Mountain to photograph the Milky Way over Grand Teton Peak,” said Jake Mosher. “While these iconic mountains have been photographed tens of thousands of times, I wanted to show an entirely unique view of them. I was treated to one of the most spectacular displays of airglow that I’ve ever seen, similar to the aurora and created by photo-charged particles but spanning much of the horizon.”
Photo: Beatrice Won, Hong Kong – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Urban wildlife
The home of the kestrel, Common kestrel, Stara Zagora, Bulgaria, Gold winner, Urban wildlife … [+] category
Photo: Vladislav Tasev, UK – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
A male common kestrel perches in its nest, a dilapidated tall and rusty street lamps that has become the bird’s home. “I took the picture at sunset to see the rust, the lamps and the bird in natural light,” said Vladislav Tasev. “The photo was taken in the town of Stara Zagora near the Thracian University, in an abandoned parking lot near a small forest.
Mid-air jousting, Two white tailed sea eagles Vladivostok, Russia, Bronze winner, Urban wildlife … [+] category
Photo: Nitin Michael, UAE – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Nature photojournalism
Injured, Australian fur seal, Port Kembla, NSW, Australia Gold winner, Nature photojournalism … [+] category
Photo: Nicolas & Léna Remy, Australia – WORLD NATURE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
An Australian fur seal in Port Kembla, Australia, shows severe injuries from a boat’s propeller.
Here are the 30 incredible photographs of photographer Mou Aysha who beautifully captured the people of Bangladesh. Mou Aysha is a documentary photographer from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She has completed her graduation in Masters in Applied English Linguistics at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh. Also, she has completed photography course in First Light Institute of Photography and she is a volunteer for social and humanitarian projects of First Light Institute.
In her words “I am dedicated to capturing life’s best moments as I see and feel them. I’ve always loved people, and I’ve always wanted to get to know them up close. The people, their culture, and their experiences have always fascinated me since my childhood. I have found that photography gives me the opportunity to learn about people and their journeys.”
Scroll down and inspire yourself. Check Mou Aysha’s Instagram for more beautiful photographs.
Sixty years ago this summer, more than 200,000 people marched in Washington, D.C. for the right of African Americans to participate fully and equally in American life. This mass movement spurred Roland L. Freeman to pick up a camera.
“I wanted to say something about the times in which I was living, and that’s what I’ve been doing ever since,” said Freeman said in an interview with the National Endowment for the Arts.
Roland L. Freeman
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Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
Bikers Take a Break. Sunday Afternoon in Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland, September 1973
In the decades since, his work has spoken volumes. The prolific documentarian traced the lives of Black Americans in urban and rural environments, with a focus on folk traditions throughout the South. Now the photographs that make up much of Freeman’s life work have found a new home at the UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library’s Southern Folklife Collection.
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Reynoldstown Quilters in Atlanta. Left to Right: Pearl Walker, Annie S. Heard, Annie L. Parks, Mamie L. Hughle, and Stephanie S. Hughley. Fulton County, Georgia, November 1992
Roland L. Freeman / Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
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Cigar Box Fiddler Scott Dunbar, Mississippi, 1975.
Roland L. Freeman / Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
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Wednesday Night Quilting Sisters of Detroit. Wayne County, Michigan, October 1986.
Roland L. Freeman / Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
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Florence Barnes. Wilkinson County, Mississippi, October 1992.
Roland L. Freeman / Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
“The Southern Folklife Collection is deeply honored and excited to preserve and provide access to Roland Freeman’s photographic archive,” said Steve Weiss, curator of the Southern Folklife Collection, in a press release.
Later this year, visitors to the library will be able to take in the nearly 24,000 slides, 10,000 photographic prints, 400,000 negatives, and 9,000 contact sheets, along with published and unpublished writings that make up the archive.
Roland L. Freeman
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Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
Community Elders, Mississippi, July 1975.
Roland L. Freeman
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Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
Hettie Barnes and her Granddaughter, Wilkinson County, Mississippi, August 1976.
But it’s the way he engaged with people behind the lens that stands out to Glenn Hinson, a longtime collaborator of Freeman and an associate professor in UNC-Chapel Hill’s Department of Anthropology.
“The brilliance of Roland is that, as a photographer, he is absolutely committed to working collaboratively with those whose photographs he’s taking. He would get to know the person and then work to capture representations that are both deep and deeply honest,” said Hinson in the release.
The Kohler Foundation, an arts non-profit, organized and donated the materials to the university and provided a $20,000 grant to help preserve the work.
A selection of the photos will be on display at a free public event at the Wilson Special Collections Library on Thursday, April 27, from 6 to 8 p.m.
This story features a subset of the images from the Roland L. Freeman collection with original captions, courtesy of the Southern Folklife Collection.
Roland L. Freeman
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Courtesy UNC-Chapel Hill Wilson Special Collections Library
A new photography display of NEPA scenery photography by Deno Pantelakos unveiled March at Abide Coffeehouse. The Wilkes-Barre café plans to decorate their walls with a collection from a different local artist each month.
Artist of the Month for March 2023 is Deno Pantelakos, who lives in Wilkes-Barre and captures timeless photos of NEPA in all its glory. Abide’s customers can grab a cup of joe and admire the beautiful photography illuminating the atmosphere until the next collection takes over.
We should all strive to see Northeastern Pennsylvania through Deno’s eyes, or his lens I should say. Pantelakos ventures into nature to take marvelous landscape photographs, especially some our favorite local spots. He’s captured our most cherished landmarks from Market Street Bridge to Ricketts Glen.
“My love for nature and of all its beauty drives me to capture and record the ever-changing scenes. I love the peaceful serenity of a sunrise and the sunset, the ever-changing colors and hues of the day,” said Pantelakos in his artist statement.
Pantelakos spends much of his free-time hiking in our nearby State Parks, capturing our many beautiful lakes, and admiring each photogenic season. On a sunny Autumn day or after a Winter ice storm, Deno Pantelakos can be found trekking out for the perfect shot.
“Since I moved to downtown Wilkes-Barre, I have started to capture city scenes, the beautiful structures of our local architecture and my favorite — capturing the four seasons at Kirby Park,” said Pantelakos.
One of his favorite pieces in the exhibited collection is a bright, fall photo of Kirby Park that can be seen on display in Abide Coffeehouse’s conference room.
Other photographs exhibited at Abide Coffeehouse include “Autumn in Ricketts Glen”, “The Arch and the Eagle”, “Soft Glow”, and “Stormy Weather.”
“Soft Glow” by Deno Pantelakos is a part of his photography collection on display at Abide Coffeehouse through March.
Pantelakos’s love for photography began 50 years ago with a Pentax K1000 film camera.
“In the past, your photos were on film, and you had to send them out to be processed. After eagerly awaiting the prints arrival on a roll of 24 frames, you had maybe six good photos. It was a struggle but persistence and patience eventually paid off,” said Pantelakos in his artist’s statement. “Everything changed with digital photography.”
Deno Pantelakos now owns NEPA Nature Photography to continue sharing his beautiful images with the world.
“The one thing that never changes in photography is the learning process. I continue to think outside the box and work on better compositions and new ways of capturing light,” said Pantelakos.
Deno Pantelakos is an active creative within the community. He’s a member of the Wyoming Valley Art League, located in the Circle Centre for the Arts in downtown Wilkes-Barre where his photography can also be observed at monthly exhibits.
His work is also exhibited at Penn State Lehman and the Irem Temple Pavilion in Dallas. You can also see his photos displayed at the 67th Annual Fine Arts Fiesta held from May 18 through May 21 in Wilkes-Barre’s Public Square.
Next time you step into Abide Coffeehouse, be sure to take a look around for a reminder from Deno Pantelakos on how beautiful Northeastern Pennsylvania really is.
Using the ‘ETTR’ technique doesn’t cost you a thing and is a great way to improve the image quality of your photographs. Chris Niccolls explains what it is, and when you should use it.
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Holy Stone produces dozens of low-cost drone models aimed at consumers. We look at the HS710 and HS175D to see if they stack up to other sub-250g offerings. Are these secretly great or more like toys?
It’s small, light, cheap and extremely wide but is it any good?
After weeks with a production Fujifilm X-T5, Chris and Jordan have some final thoughts.
The EOS R6 II arrives in one of the most competitive parts of the market, facing off against some very capable competition. We think it rises to the challenge.
Released only weeks apart, the Sony 50mm F1.4 GM and Sigma F1.4 DG DN Art are clear competitors. Which is the better buy?
Above $2500 cameras tend to become increasingly specialized, making it difficult to select a ‘best’ option. We case our eye over the options costing more than $2500 but less than $4000, to find the best all-rounder.
There are a lot of photo/video cameras that have found a role as B-cameras on professional film productions or even A-cameras for amateur and independent productions. We’ve combed through the options and selected our two favorite cameras in this class.
What’s the best camera for around $2000? These capable cameras should be solid and well-built, have both the speed and focus to capture fast action and offer professional-level image quality. In this buying guide we’ve rounded up all the current interchangeable lens cameras costing around $2000 and recommended the best.
Family moments are precious and sometimes you want to capture that time spent with loved ones or friends in better quality than your phone can manage. We’ve selected a group of cameras that are easy to keep with you, and that can adapt to take photos wherever and whenever something memorable happens.
What’s the best camera for shooting sports and action? Fast continuous shooting, reliable autofocus and great battery life are just three of the most important factors. In this buying guide we’ve rounded-up several great cameras for shooting sports and action, and recommended the best.
Three days after this magnificent eclipse I managed to process through some more photos out of my camera’s memory card. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to capture the diamond ring before the totality, just the one the came afterwards. Regardless, I am happy the sun got sunspots 2671 and 2672 clearly visible. It made the job a whole lot easier.
All images were photographed with a Canon EOS 50D, DSLR camera on prime focus method on a William Optics 110mm FLT APO f/7.0 telescope. While the live video on Youtube at the day of the eclipse was a Samsung Galaxy S7 phone with afocal method on a 32 mm ocular attached on a William Optics Megrez 72mm FD f/6.0.
The camera settings were, ISO-500, shutter speed at 1/3200 sec., 6000 K and the wheel setting was on M (manual mode).
Below is a composite image of all the solar eclipse phases that are displayed individually on the slideshow above. Click on the image below to expand it to its full size.
Niklas Henricson
The fascination of star gazing had already started during the very first years of my childhood. I was looking up at the night sky with my grandfather every summer night, studying constellations, the phases of the moon cycle, counting satellite passages and by using his binoculars to discover globular clusters of stars. Equipped with star maps from his home-library I was gradually discovering more and more of this fascinating world we call universe.
Even though years went by, the interest and fascination of cosmos had never left me… I found myself occupied with many other things before astronomy finally became my main hobby in recent years.
I was born in Stockholm, Sweden 1979 and grew for the most part of my childhood years in Greece. Later I’ve studied physics at Lund’s university and was hoping to continue with astronomy. At my free time I was an active amateur astronomer in South Sweden, Lund. At some point I was also appointed as chief of observatory for the Tycho Brahe Astronomy Society in Lund.
Circumstances in life led me to move with my family to California. Today I’m working as a sofrware developer within the aviation industry and weather systems for airports. During my off-time, I spend most of my time with my wife Melissa and our daughters.
My main hobbies are astronomy, astrophotography, game development and I was also a member of several astronomy societies in south Sweden but time was never enough to continue being an active member.
This blog is dedicated to my family (Melissa, Vanita and Lena Grace), our friends and to all of you who share the same fascination towards the beauty of this science and all the mysteries yet to be revealed by our constant discoveries!
“Soft Glow” by Deno Pantelakos is a part of his photography collection on display at Abide Coffeehouse through March.
