You’d think that a figure of pure darkness would appear to be the essence of evil. But the 158 silhouettes from this week’s Shooting Challenge are active, earnest, understated, funny, friendly, sexy…and yes…occasionally just a little evil, too.

Lead Shot

Taken with a Nikon D80 in manual mode with an ISO of 100 and a 28-105 Nikkor that I’ve had since the 90′s. Shot at f/29 for 1/10 seconds with a white shopping bag taped to the window in direct sun, tweaked the tones in PS.
-Joe Pavelsek

Grazing

As I was driving during the country on my way home I spotted several cattle in front of this pretty sunset. I pulled over quickly and crouched on the side of the road to get the specified angle. I was slightly rushed as I attempted to bypass being run over but I tried to make the most effective of it. Nikon D5000, Sigma 70-200 2.8, 1/1250, f/4.0, ISO 100
-Doug Auerbach

Death Carnival

This shot was done using an iPhone 3Gs camera, no special setting was used. I applied just little Photoshop level tweak.

I was walking enjoying the 2010 Kern County Fair Carnival in Bakersfield, California, once I saw this people taking this high ride. Sun was just falling painting the sky with nice colors. I got my iPhone and took this picture very fast, after I reviewed this shot I realized this excellent silhouettes flying around this rotating tower.
-Eduardo Arenas

A Conversation

A conversation between man and his best friend. Canon 7D, Tokina 11-16mm, 1/200s, f/5.0, ISO 100
-Lin Dunsmore

Branches In Sunset

Taken in Julian, San Diego county. This was the sunset right before a vicious rain storm which hammered the world for the next two days. Nikon D3000 w/ 55-200mm, f/5.3, 1/320 sec., ISO 200
-Andre Mere

Spider, Web

I took this picture above the fence next to the place I’m staying in Queensburrow (near Vancouver), BC, Canada. I got up to take out the trash within the morning and it was exceptionally foggy, which doesn’t happen very often here. I had actually eyed another shot, went inside and got my camera, took it, then wandered around a touch until I found this one. Not much of a story, but that’s how it happened! Canon T1i , EF50mm f1.8/ II, 1/250, f/8.0, ISO 100
-Jess Gibson

Fire

This weeks Shooting Challenge couldn’t have come at a neater time. I live in Norrköping, Sweden and just today there was an empty building that burned down. I was already planning on taking place a walk with my neighbor to take photos of the fall leaves but we didn’t get out until after the sun went down. So in place of taking photos of the leaves we walked over to the building that burned down and I got to take some photos of that instead. It’s situated right on the river side so within the photo you’ll find the reflection of the hearth in addition as the strong light the firemen manage while spraying it down with water.

Some slight tone, contrast, and level changes. I then converted the complete photo to black and white and let the hearth and 30% of the smoke’s original color through. Taken on my Pentax K100D Super.
-Mariathe Phan

Black Is the most recent Canal

I was in my neighborhood the night of October 1st experimenting with long exposure and stars after I took this picture. This was among the last shots I took and I was about to quit for lack of success, but I’m glad I didn’t. I found this picture very relaxing and decided to submit it due to the silhouette the trees made against the blue sky and it’s reflection inside the canal. Nikon Coolpix P6000, Shutter Speed: 25 Seconds, F/3.2, ISO 64
-Charlie White

Wait…A Freaking Walk Counts As a Date In this day and age? Has The Economy Gotten THAT Bad??

I just started dating a woman and we were on a walk last Sunday night for a date. She mention on an earlier date she liked walking around capturing along with her camera, so we brought our cameras. We were walking on a path by her place and we reached a small valley. On the west side there was a grassy hill and we saw a family crossing the crest on their bikes. She was the one that suggested I take a picture of them. Canon 50D, EF28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, ISO: 1000, 1/200 sec at f / 5.6
-Robert Walker

The Model

I took this picture with a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX1. The camera was state-of-the-art, and I was extremely excited to get the danger to take advantage of it. Initially, I found it challenging to capture a silhouette, until I believed of using a window. I finished up having quite a fancy setup: First, I closed every door and shade inside the room, with the exception of one, so that the inside the house can be darker than the surface. I then hung up a sheet in front of the window, to circumvent capturing the trees inside the background, and placed a model sailboat on the windowsill. And then needless to say, I had to watch for the wind to die down so that the sheet would stop blowing within the way. Once the lighting and wind were most appropriate, I took the picture. The picture was edited a bit (inside the guidelines), simply to make the sailboat stand out just a little more.
-Bradley Koval

Payload

This was just a snappy shot with a Samsung Vibrant using the stock camera app. No alterations were made with the picture. I chose to go away it this kind because it helps add to what the feeling is like when the door and ramp first open. I didn’t have much time. Also my camera was in my bag strapped down within the back while I was within the front. This can be the cargo compartment of a C-130 Hercules. We had just landed on our flight home, a little bit turbulence I’d add. The aircraft was just dropping us off and taking backpedal, so the loadmaster opens the ramp and door and we exit the rear with all four engines still turning.
-Daniel Thompson

Smoking Dragon

I was siting at my computer and thinking what picture to make once I saw a silhouette of my dragon, so I grabbed my camera and made a number of pictures and this one was the most effective Canon 7D, EF-S 55-250 IS, 1/20, f/6.3, ISO 100
-Paulius Barakauskas

Leap: Part I

Long story short, my friend and I made up my mind to take a walk Thursday evening and I insisted on going past the recent Venice skate park just for the prospect to get a stunning sunset for my very first Gizmodo photo challenge entry.There were several skaters which could really catch air so I was super excited and the sunset was incredible. I doubted I’d get anything good but once I got home and saw this image, to me, it was the single and only to send in. I basically just shot straight into the sun, very minor contrast and levels adjustment to aid the colors pop. I’m very satisfied with the shoot mostly. Canon Rebel T2i, 18-55mm, ISO 200, f/4.5, 1/1000 sec.
-Rachael Campbell

Leap: Part II

We were down inside the Coromandel region of recent Zealand, We are just coming out of an awful winter down here but today the sun was shining and the temp was hot – first proper day of summer yeayah.. Was around 6 inside the evening, Pulled off the road for a smoke, took a wander throughout the bush and stumbled on a decision waterhole. I was down the bank having a smoke while my mates rigged an impromptu rope swing. As soon as the first one jumped I grabbed my cam and shot this straight off… loving the karate-kick action happening. Was a mint break within the road trip. Sony a200 with Kit lens, 1/2000 sec, f5.6, ISO 100
-James Pendergrast

Electric Highway

An Electric Highway. You notice these everywhere. They go on for hundreds of miles without turning. A channel cut right across the land. It’s actually a recreation of a shot I took several years ago. I knew I liked the shot for silhouetting, and I still have the original. I knew where to take the shot and when. a controversy arose once I realized brush had grown much higher over time. I finished up standing on the support for a lightweight post to get the shot up above the brush. Another problem was that there were now light posts (you can actually be seen within the shot). This just makes me realize that a scissor lift could be an extraordinarily handing thing to have (don’t strike a cord in me that top voltage overhead lines and scissor lifts don’t mix well). Nikon D90, Nikon 18-200 VR, 1/60 sec. f/8, ISO 200
-Ryan Powers

Bridge

The shot shows the Boğaziçi Köprüsü (bridge in Istanbul over the Bosporus). I even have recently discovered the shooting challenge on Gizmodo and wanted to participate. So this shot is from my vacation in Istanbul last week.

Me and my Girlfriend went spontaneously on a tourist tour during the Bosporus, and this bridge is the strongest landmark of Istanbul through its special lighting which slowly changes color (for gadgets a meanwhile quite cheap effect, for a bridge it looks nevertheless impressive). So I wished to capture this famous bridge. As my girlfriend and I share the camera, I told her to take a look at a shot of the bridge, hoping she would see an angle I haven’t spotted, and it is the result.

In the uncropped picture the bridge wasn’t centered (thats why the ratio is be a touch strange) but with this very geometric type of the bridge the symmetry enhances the fantastic thing about the shot. To me, here is probably the most impressive shot out of the 500 pics of the last week (though not the neatest since it isn’t typical for the region). Canon EOS 350D, Canon 18-55, 1/60, f/5.0, ISO 1600
-Damian Vogel

WINNER – Hot Air Balloon Eclipse

My fiancee and I were at the outlet day of the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, NM taking a whole bunch pictures. I was searching for how to incorporate the silhouette challenge, but wasn’t having much luck. Then, I felt a shadow come over me and was ready to turn around quick enough to take a picture just as a balloon was passing in front of the sun. FujiFilm S9100 (ISO 100, f/8, 1/2000).
-Matthew Recker

Incredible entries this week-with loads of novel use of the silhouette. The three full galleries are below, and you’ll download the wallpaper-sized photos on flickr . (Note: I know this flickr setup isn’t ideal, however it’s the simplest we will do for now. Please guide those inside the comments who don’t know the wallpapers are on flickr appropriately.)

Gallery 1 ( one page view )

Gallery 2 ( one page view )

Gallery 3 ( one page view )

Want to take even more unpaid photos? Visit my new site, Life, Panoramic , and share a day to your life. Or, you can just stop by to spy Kat Hannaford’s photography of South London .

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