Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by alanfreed:
Just a quick note of thanks for the comments -- I'm very excited and proud to have a Top 5 photo!

A couple notes about the picture... I had about a 15-minute window of time to capture this in the light I wanted (as the sun went down below the roof). I struggled quite a bit to get the whole birdie in focus. My initial efforts had part of it in focus but not the whole thing, plus some of the shots had a pretty weird effect with the grains of the roof tiles being in/out of focus, so I did a lot of experimentation with the F-stops to get the appropriate DOF.

My other challenge was the wind. Even the slightest breeze would knock the stupid thing off the roof, so I stuck a big bolt in the tip of the birdie to keep it there. If you look really closely, you can actually see a very small part of the silver in the bolt where the tip meets the yellow material.

Oh, and my first thought was indeed to use a frisbee (as a couple people mentioned). I couldn't find a suitable frisbee around the house, so I actually went to several stores in search of one. The stores apparently discontinue them at the end of summer, so I was out of luck. In retrospect, I'm glad I went with this because it offers a little more depth than what I probably would have had with a frisbee.

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by jsabbarton:
Superb... Really well planned, really great idea and a fantastic use of DOF and lighting...(10)

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by KarenB:
LOL! How true. Brilliant idea, and well executed!

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by cq107:
lol. great shot... how do you hit a birdy up there anyways ? jk

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by byetko:
He he, that sucks. Good photo though. The dof and colors are excellent. 7.

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by Martin:
Brilliant idea, sums up alot of early frustration. Nice detail and good cropping.

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by mcmurma:
this was an instant chuckle! familiar scene. nice composition and good use of DOF. (6) ~mcmurma

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by floyd:
Lol - this is great. Love the DoF and I *dont* want to know how you got on your roof to take this. Lovely colour and light and excellent use of humour. Love it. 10 - floyd

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by Gotcha:
Woe, this is my childhood. I love it. The shadow is perfect. This is my #1 pick for this challenge. Congrats - Gotcha

Not Again...
by alanfreed

Comment by MarkRob:
Excellent composition great execution. I wonder where you are from that badminton is a childhood sport for you... I always remember footballs and frisbees...