11/22/2008

Money Shot 2008 Week Six has been decided by Ian Hylands Powered by Kokanee Crankworx @ Whistler August 9 - 17

Week six was judged by Money Shot veteran Ian Hylands.   His discerning eye selected a pleasing variety of photos from this week's bumper crop of quality shots. Ian has been around long enough to shoot every aspect of mountain biking and his wealth of experience is reflected in the diversity of his choices for this week.  Thanks for your efforts Ian.

Since April is Syncros month here at Money Shot, this week's winner gets a new AM saddle from the legendary brand - along with some of their 4 bolt locking grips. 

Have a look at Ian's choices and feel free to make your own selections on this week's bulletin board thread.

- Cam McRae

Syncros' new AM saddles are built to take it but only 294 grams

Syncros 4 bolt locking grips to keep you interfaced with your ride.

Week Six Winner

This shot is awesome. I really like the lines of the shot, especially the right to left diagonal of the hillside and the vertical lines of the trees behind it. The dust trail and the focused look of the rider really shows some speed, and the pile of roost coming off his tire only adds to that. The fact that the trail looks almost to be off camber over roots doesn't hurt either. On a closer look it may not be that rooting on the trail, but it still looks impressive. I don't really like that his foot is off the pedal, I think it would be better if he was pedaling, charging out of the corner, but that's a minor detail and without knowing the trail I can't really judge that.

Zbojnicak DH/FR track- Photographer: Jan Tekel|| Rider: Matyas Palko. Click for large version.

Second place

Bridger Mountains, Montana. Photographer:John Parker || Rider: Pip (Full Size here)

This really made me want to ride my bike. The lines and cleanness of it caught my eye as a thumbnail, and when I looked at it larger it still looked great. I love the light, and the trees on the left side add a nice touch of color. Also the peekaboo view of the valley floor on the right side lets you know how long the ride is... It's also really well balanced and fits well in the rule of thirds.

Third place

Innerleithen Scotland. Photographer: Stevie Millgate || Rider: Danny Hart (Another look here.)

This shot of Danny Hart first caught my eye because of the color. On second look I almost wrote it off as a pretty generic race shot of someone doing a whip, but something about it drew me in. I kept looking at it and realized it was probably the light. The way the light catches the leaves on the trail and the dust trail lights up in the background. The composition leaves a little bit to be desired, but that's why I put it third instead of 1st or 2nd.

 Kamloops. Photographer: Matt Miles|| Rider:  Trent Kidd (Bigger!.)

I'm usually not impressed by a lot of black and white photos that I see here, probably because I believe that a lot is needed to create a good black and white image. Too many people in my mind simply shoot an image with their digital camera and then turn it black and white to see what it looks like. Having said that there are a lot of things about this image that I think could be improved. The rider could be a little more to the right so he's not right on the line of the grass, and the sign or whatever it is on the left could be cropped out at the same time. All it would take is an angle maybe a few inches to the left. But at the same time I really like the way the trail curves into the out of focus line of the jump in the foreground. And I like the people watching on the right, although it might be nice to see a tiny bit more of them. Overall I think this shot looks great in B&W, a little bit more work on the composition and it could have been in the top 2 no problem.

Location - Blind Dogs- Photographer: Tyler Reid || Rider: Ray Robb (Generously sized here.)

I like the way this shot looks, it reminds me of an old selenium toned print. And the grass goes well with the look. I'm still not completely decided on the focus, but I like it. The line of the trail in the distance looks great as well, makes me want to go ride this trail even though it looks like it might be wet and greasy. I'd like the trail in the foreground to be a little more distinguished, mostly because it's the focus point of the shot.

To see all the images Ian had to choose from in week six click here.  To see week seven, which is well under way click here and for the entire Money Shot 2008 gallery this is the place.

Let us know what you think of Ian's choices and show us own week six winner in this thread.