Horse Photo Competition 2 2016 : Results

Judges Comment
What a truly stunning and instantly memorable image. One can almost feel the wind in the horse's tail and playing on the water's choppy surface, and can almost feel the chill in the air of this stark landscape. Beautiful tones and white balance, strong framing. An absolutely stellar image. Bravo! ~ illona
Photographers Comment
Wow, thank you so much, Illona! This photo was taken on a windy October morning at the North Sea in Cuxhaven, Germany, and it shows my horse - and all time favourite model - Bella. At the beginning, she didn't like the rough sea and waves coming at her, but I gave her some time and then everything played together: The sea, the wind, the clouds and the soft light. The photo was taken with a Canon 1D Mark III and Sigma 50mm 1.4, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop. Thank you so much for this honour and also congratulations to all the other participants who achieved a mark of excellence for their great photos!
www.tierfotografie-albrecht.de

Judges Comment
The white-on-white minimalism of this image is fabulous ... the tangled and knotted mane, the scars on the horse's hide, the half closed eye and the turned-back ear, all the different textures and language make this a truly rich image. Nicely done! ~ illona
Photographers Comment
Thank you for the mark of excellence! This picture was taken a few weeks ago during one of my travel trips and captures a wild stallion in Europe. I felt inspired by his strength but also calmness. I'm planing on visiting several wild horse populations all around the globe in the following years to complete this project. It means the world to me to show the very core of their existence to people, who may not even know they exist. We can learn a lot from just observing them. You can see more photos of this series on my website, if you're interested. Carina Maiwald
www.carinamaiwald.com

Judges Comment
This is an incredible image. The simplicity of its presentation and the strength in the reflection are simply wonderful. Very nicely seen and captured. ~ illona
Photographers Comment
Thank you so much for this mark of excellence. This picture shows the beautiful hanoverian mare Bella and was taken on a cloudy morning with my Canon 5D Mark III and the Canon 16-35mm. Sometimes there are these little moments you have to catch.
www.eilina-oertelt.de

Judges Comment
What a gorgeous image. Not only a beautiful moment captured between these two gorgeous horses, but wonderful white balance and depth of field, super focus, perfect lighting ... superbly done. ~ illona

Judges Comment
This image offers an intimacy for the viewer because of the angle chosen by the photographer, bringing the viewer into the sweet moment captured between mare and foal. Lovely white balance and color control. Nicely done! ~ illona
Photographers Comment
Thank you so much for this Mark of Excellence! My name is Peggy and I'm from Neubrandenburg, Germany. Two month ago I had an appointment with a client. The foal was one day old at this time and I really love to watch foals in their first hours, days and weeks. I was sitting on the brink of the paddock and this moment was just awesome. I didn't have to move aside for this lovely shot. They kissed each other directly in front of me. The picture was taken with a Nikon D800 and has been processed in Photoshop and Lightroom.
www.peggyschroeder.de

Judges Comment
This is a beautiful capture of a truly stunning horse. Wonderfully framed with the brush and super white balance and tones. Nicely done. ~ illona
Photographers Comment
Thanks you so much for including my image as one of the Mark of Excellence choices! My name is Lisa L. Kee. I am a hobbyist photographer from Missouri. I was on vacation in North Dakota at Theodore Roosevelt National Park this spring. We were lucky to see so many herds of wild horses on our visit and this was one of my favorites. The landscape was an added bonus. Image was taken with a Canon 7D, Canon 500mm f/4.5 lens. Shot at ISO 500, f/7.1@ 1/250th. Processed in Lightroom 3.
facebook.com/lisalkeephotography

Judges Comment
This peaceful capture is a lovely glimpse into the life of mustangs. A very sweet image. ~ illona
Photographers Comment
Congratulations to all the winners, such wonderful selection! Thank you for the "Mark of Excellence" I am German who lives in Utah, USA and came to love to take pictures of the Wild Mustang's a few years ago. "A look into the future" is showing a Wild Mustang Stallion and one of his Mares. This was taken in Utah's desert with a Nikon D5100 Sigma 150-500mm, processed with PS.

Judges Comment
This is a lovely image ... the horse and rider stand out beautifully from the late fall landscape, and the low angle of the shot puts the viewer in the landscape. Nicely done. ~ illona

Judges Comment
This is a stunning image ... beautifully framed with the horse looking into the body of the image, and a wonderful use of the low afternoon light. The sweep of the branches overhead and the surrounding leaves behind and in the foreground framing this magnificent subject all make for a truly spectacular photo. Well done. ~ illona
Photographers Comment
Thank you so much for another Mark of Excellence! My name is Peggy and I'm from Neubrandenburg, Germany. The picture was taken with a Nikon D800 and has been also processed in Photoshop and Lightroom. It shows our horse on one of the last autumn days with all these colourful leaves in 2015.
www.peggyschroeder.de

Judges Comment
What a fabulous sunset (sunrise?) photo. Beautiful exposure for sky and the horse. Nicely done. ~illona