THE amateur behind this striking photo has said hours of editing are all worthwhile "if someone stops and looks for just a couple of seconds".
Chris Burnham's stunning shot of a pond at Langworth, Lincolnshire, was the winner of our September Camera Club contest, which gives local photographers the chance to showcase their best work.
The winner's photograph is printed in the Grimsby Telegraph and they receive a canvas print of their work – worth £70 – from sponsors Comley Cameras in St Peter's Avenue, Cleethorpes.
Mr Burnham, a 48-year-old machine technician with Phillips 66, said: "It's nice to be able to put some work out and to know that someone else has appreciated it."
The keen fisherman took his photo as the sun set after a day of fishing at the pond.But it was the editing which made the photograph so special, merging four separate shots at different exposures to bring out the light and dark colours in the shot.
"You can't always get the shot you want but with editing software you can turn something fairly ordinary into something quite special," he said.
"It takes a moment to take a photo but it can take hours to edit it and you can be quite artistic which is what I love about photography.
"Photos are easy to flick through but winning this competition shows that someone stopped and looked at mine, even if for just a few seconds, which makes all the editing worthwhile."
However, Paul Burgess, manager at Comley Cameras, said it was the "high quality" of the photo that made it stand out from other entries when he picked the winner.
Mr Burgess said: "There was some subtle work on the sky and we live in a digital age so we have to appreciate the creativity of the edit – it was done so well that it wasn't obvious.
"However, it was the moody tones and the high quality that made it stand out, particularly as last month's winner was a very bright shot.
"We are always looking for something eye-catching and different so this definitely fitted the bill, although it's a subjective process and we had some other brilliant shots too which made it a really tough decision."
Enter your photograph
To enter the Grimsby Telegraph Camera Club, simply send your images to pictures@grimsbytelegraph.co.uk and include your contact details and caption. Please send a high-resolution image, which is big enough to use on a large canvas print if you win. All amateur photographers are welcome. Editing not required.
