Robinson Transport driver Bob McGilvray, based in Columbus, Ohio, took the top spot in Truckers News’ April night photography contest with this shot.
He calls it “Bedtime at Sideling Hill Plaza,” taken at the eponymous Pennsylvania Turnpike service center at mile marker 172, and describes the scene captured just prior to shutting down on a dark night in summer 2010. “I just happened to look out the window and see that,” he says.
McGilvray used a six-inch Polaroid tripod set up on the parking lot’s surface for the low-light shot, going the extra mile for good results. He was lying on the ground behind the camera as he snapped the shutter open, he says. “I’m sure I looked like an idiot.”
McGilvray’s photo will be published in the June edition of Truckers News. As the first two-time winner of the magazine’s monthly contest, hosted via the Truckers News Flickr.com photo group, he also takes home a copy of Harold Davis’ Creative Lighting: Digital Photography Tips & Techniques.
The May contest opens up the subject matter to birds and barns, items evident in abundance on rural highways throughout the United States. Summer’s approaching, so take advantage of the reasonable temperatures and hunt out great photos of birds, barns or both.
The prize this month is publication of the winning photo in the July edition of the magazine as well as a copy of “The Photographer’s Mind: Creative Thinking for Better Digital Photos,” by Michael Freeman, author of the “Photographer’s Eye” guide. For details on how to enter, see below or visit The Photographer: Truckers News Photo Group at http://flickr.com/groups/truckersnews.
TO ENTER THE MAY “BIRDS AND BARNS” contest:
1. Post your appropriately themed, high-resolution (at least 1,500 by 900 pixels) photo to the group pool at http://flickr.com/group/truckersnews by midnight May 31. (Alternately, you may email Todd Dills at tdills [at] rrpub.com if you’re having difficulty posting.)
2. Send an email with your full name, location/mailing address and your trucking business’ profile in brief (who you drive for or whether you run on your own authority as an owner-operator, etc.) to Todd Dills at tdills [at] rrpub.com — include “photo contest” in the subject line and a link to the original Flickr location of your entered picture as well. You may enter up to three pictures on the theme.