An online article once proudly proclaimed: no one is making a bad camera, you’re just a bad photographer. It reminds one of that anecdote about the photographer who attended a dinner. According to the story: a photographer was invited to have dinner at the home of a nice couple. During dinner the wife comments to the photographer “Your pictures are beautiful. You must have a great camera.” The photographer nods politely. After finishing dinner the photographer comments to the wife “That was a fine meal. You must have some great pots!”
Indeed, photography is an art form that needs an eye, and maybe just a bit of luck.
It was supposedly luck that led photographer Yu Wei to win an online photography contest by Nikon Singapore. Nikon’s official Facebook page posted the winning shot on Facebook, showing a top view of a set of ladders with a plane perfectly captured in the middle. According to the post:
Yu Wei chanced upon a set of ladders while on a photowalk with his friends in Chinatown, and thought the view above would make an interesting perspective. Little did he expect to catch an airplane in mid-air. We’ll try looking up too, Yu Wei; your shot has won you a Nikon trolley bag. Congratulations!
Photo Credit: Chay Yu Wei using the Nikon D90
Shutter Speed: 1/1600”
Aperture: F2.8
However, if you look closely, the plane was clearly added. You can see that the plane’s surroundings has a rectangle that has a slightly different shade of gray. Netizens saw this and posted their own versions of the shot.
Below are some hilarious samples:
Adrian Lam
Alex Hauck
David Dutton
Efan Amran
Mezame Shashin Ka
Randy DeWitt Wei Ming
Render Brant
Rogan Yeoh
Thomas Lim
Toh Wee Siang
Tom Ignatius
Zhirong Fu
Nikon has also released a statement:
At Nikon, we believe that innovation and imagination are at the heart of every image. While innovation is driven by the technological advances in our devices and cameras, we see imagination as the ability to see greatness and use each and every tool at your disposal to make them real.
NikonCaptures is a casual photography contest that focuses not on the devices or props you use, but on the imagination and creativity that each photographer exudes while capturing and sharing their images. We have taken in every feedback received, and we sincerely apologise for the oversight on our part. We are now in the process of carefully revisiting the contest’s rules and regulations, for the benefit of all our current NikonCaptures members. We will update everyone of the contest rules once we have revisited all of them.
At the same time, we welcome the funny and witty entries being shared in response to our recently awarded image. It’s with joy that we acknowledge that the global photography and image community is alive and thriving. We thank you for the numerous spontaneous contributions and encourage everyone to keep the imagination alive.
Which one is your favorite? Share it below!
