September 2026 Competition - After Dark

[Tim Mayo]

Our September monthly competition is now open for entreis.

Please Include Metadata with Images Submitted.

Theme
For this month our theme will be "After Dark".

Competition Dates
Entries start: The date that this post is published.
Entries end: Sep 21st
Voting starts: Sep 21st
Voting ends: Sep 28th

Shot Taken Date
Images can be taken anytime, there is no restriction like we had in 2024 for images to be taken in the current or previous two months.

What Do I Get if I Win?
I'm afraid now it's just the joy of taking part, but I will look into adding a special profile banner to winners profiles. In the past there have been vouchers for 1st and 2nd places, but we want to try and encourage people to enter without dangling a voucher code in front of them.

How to Enter + Rules

1. Post your entries in this thread by scrolling down to the reply box then hitting the 'upload images' button. Insert image as full not thumbnail.
2. Sony cameras only.
3. Camera metadata must be included in the images to verify.
4. Only one photo entry per member.
5. Keep the photos clean and family friendly.
6. Please don't use sky replacements or AI image generation.
7. You are free to change you image during the entry period.
8. Not essential but it would be nice if you added a little background information on your entry.

How to Vote (when voting opens)

1. Use the vote button (up arrow) to the right of the post (below post on mobile) to vote up images that you like
2. You can vote on as many images as you like apart from your own

Themes for 2026
Our themes for the year have already been decided to give you a heads-up on what's coming next.

• Jan: Travel & Places
• Feb: Black & White
• Mar: Life & People
• Apr: Light & Shadow
• May: Nature & Wildlife
• Jun: Motion
• Jul: Close-Up & Macro
• August: Urban & Street
• Sep: After Dark
• Oct: Abstract
• Nov: Long Exposure
• Dec: Your Favourite Shot of 2026

Feedback
I'd really appreciate feedback about how the competition is running but please don't post it in this thread. Instead please post any feedback in this thread in the Feedback Forum.

Thank you for participating and good luck!

Tim

 

[Tim Mayo]

Please note the rules folks:

1. Sony cameras only.
2. Camera metadata must be included in the images to verify.
3. Only one photo entry per member.
4. Keep the photos clean and family friendly.
5. Please don't use sky replacements or AI image generation.
6. You are free to change you image during the entry period.
7. There is no date restriction like we had last year.

Thank you!

 

[rcreamer]

I took this on my way home from my first ever trip to Glacier Point. I wasn't expecting this I'll try again in 3-6 weeks or next year. Edit: Since this was taken, I have had more practice with low light scenes and would have used a larger aperture, a lower ISO, and would have tried to "expose to the right" to get better color accuracy and noise in the dark areas.

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II
• 24.0 mm
• ƒ/8
• 30 sec
• ISO 1000

 

[DaveC Oz]

A blended exposure shot of the Nullawil Silo art with the Milky Way core overhead. The silos were painted by the very talented Sam Bates (SMUG). Since I last visited these silos they have been floodlit, so this shot is a blend of 10 stacked Milky Way shots (100 seconds) with a single 2 second shot of the silos.

• Viltrox 16mm F1.8 FE
• 16.0 mm
• ƒ/1.7999999523163
• 100 sec
• ISO 5000

 

[Reina]

Just before sunrise in the small hamlet of Bontebok in Friesland, a northern province of the Netherlands.
This location had long been on my to-do list, and when I visited last weekend, it was misty and damp—perfect conditions for a landscape photographer.
(I did remove town name signs in Photoshop)

Sony A7IV
Aperture f/16
Shutter speed 3.2 sec
ISO 100
Exposure compensation +1 stop
Tripod
Lens FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS at 194mm

• ILCE-7M4
• FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS
• 194.0 mm
• ƒ/16
• 3.2 sec
• ISO 100

 

[MikeWPM]

Camels having a few Zzzz's before being sold

• ILCE-7CM2
• Sony FE 35mm F1.4 GM (SEL35F14GM)
• 35.0 mm
• ƒ/3.5
• 1/60 sec
• ISO 12800

 

[Holden]

Here is a group of young folks having fun on Castro St. in San Francisco

 

[Holden]

A blended exposure shot of the Nullawil Silo art with the Milky Way core overhead. The silos were painted by the very talented Sam Bates (SMUG). Since I last visited these silos they have been floodlit, so this shot is a blend of 10 stacked Milky Way shots (100 seconds) with a single 2 second shot of the silos.View attachment 86819

Great shot!!!! I'm breathless.