Composite landscapes
annafranca

Composite landscapes

September 2025

This capture stood out from all other nightscapes submitted to the contest. The deep shadows cast by the dunes add invaluable depth and interest to the image. Compositionally speaking, it is beautiful to see the dark shadow line converging precisely into the corner of the frame. Similarly, the milky way, nearly cutting the shot in half, points right to the small silhouette of a man placed in the lower third of the image, following the rule of thirds. It's carefully crafted details like these that set this shot apart from other night landscapes, turning this picture into a striking, balanced and truly successful composite capture.

Expert
winner

This peaceful and ethereal shot immediately captured my attention as I browsed through the entries. The sky, beautifully dramatic, adds a splash of colour that is as striking as pleasing to the eye, Compositionally speaking, the image is very balanced, with the flamingo placed off to one side following the rule of thirds and the clouds all swerving towards their respective corner of the frame. The light and exposure on the added flamingo match the ones of the landscape it is composited in, making the scene appear realistic and yet fantastically ethereal. This is great capture that features composite prominently and successfully.

Brief

See more contest details

**This contest is open to photographers ranked 1001+ in this week’s <a href="https://www.photocrowd.com/photographer-community/">Leaderboard</a>.** NOTE: All image elements must have been shot by the uploading photographer. Adding a dramatic sky to your landscape image can work wonders, but needs some skill too. It can also be a giveaway when a bright sky is paired with a dull landscape that was obviously shot under very different conditions. But the sky is definitely not the limit for composite landscape imagery, and with some good taste, well shot elements, and appropriately applied understatement, the sum can be very much more than the parts and produce impactful imagery that would be impossible to achieve with one capture.

699 Images entered

378 Photographers

Meet the expert judge

The first thing to catch my eye in this image is the pleasing symmetry. Even though we almost can't make out any details from the subjects, their shadows are so neat and so well-captured against the setting sun that they work as they are, telling their story without the need to show us anything else. The colour grading adds drama and the composite elements blend in with the original components beautifully, adding interesting details to the image. A successful composite capture indeed!