Ambient Fright winners!

A happy and haunted Halloween to all of you Le Cliquers, and especially to participants of the "Ambient Fright" photo contest. A big thank you to all for making the first ever LC photo contest a huge success.

Entries were ranked on a points system individually by our three esteemed judges with the scariest photo recieving 3 pts, second scariest 2 pts, and third scariest garnering 1 pt respectively. The scores from the judges were totaled with the highest score taking the prize.

And now, in what is sure to be the biggest scandal since the G.W Bush/ Al Gore election, are the winners of "Ambient Fright"...

First Place




Second Place



Third Place




Honorable Mentions








Now for the prize!

To avoid allegations of ballot stuffing and voting misdeeds (and the fact that Jenn and I knew what the prize was so it ruins the surprise) we have decided to bestow the grand prize to our third place finisher -Zerodaze for his classic O.G. haunted house. He will receive the following prize package valued doubtlessly, at next to nothing.



A set of vintage "Little Technical Library" instructional photography books!!!

Again thanks to all of our participants and congratulations for making "Ambient Fright" a blast.

Things that go bump in the night

It turns out I seem to have the best luck (or worst depending on how you look at it) at shooting and finding creepy things at night. What are the odds that when I'm just simply trying to familiarize myself with using a camera in all types of light, the things that go bump in the night would choose to make an appearance in the post-processing stage? Needless to say, I'll no longer be testing the camera in the dark.

Highway snapshot

Jenn and I were quite startled to glimpse this on the road home the other night after exiting the highway. After seeing something ahead at the edge of the headlights I managed to grab our point and shoot (which always sits in the cupholder just in case) and grab three shots. The other two were mostly dash and headliner (I was driving after all) but this one got it. We were both needless to say, pretty skeezed out.

We now take the next exit to get home at night.

Ambient Extension - Thursday, Oct. 29!

If you'd like to submit more images for Ambient Fright, you have one last chance to do it! Post your images no later than 7:00pm EST, Thursday October 29th.

Happy creepy photo'ing!

The Birds

Phantom of the Plum

Evil lurks beneath a juicy exterior!

Empire!

I took this photo with an old, old digital camera I had. I decided to look through the memory card before tossing it out when I found this. I don't even remember shooting it. Passing moments in the big city.

Smiley

This is one of my grandmother's dogs. I call her Yim Yim ("Smile smile").

My personal nightmare

Yea so some people know that birds give me the jibblies so a life-sized one would pretty much send me running in the opposite direction.

Fleischmanns'

An abandoned house in an all but abandoned town!

More toy fun

Somebody Wake Me From This Nightmare

Dead Ringer

I captured this image on my way to work this morning with my cell phone. Looks like this guy was a victim of the gang of squirrels in the neighborhood. Rest in pieces my friend. Converted to B&W and curve adjustments.

Ambient Fright: Meet Judge No. 003

Profile

Name: Kate

Age: 12 1/2

Occupation: Full time student

Location: Texas

Favorite scary movie: The Ring

Hobbies: Reading and Drawing

Notes: While not afraid of the dark (what is it with these kids?), Kate certainly finds spiders scary. This Halloween, you may find her trick or treating while dressed as an American Idol judge. When asked what makes her a good judge for Ambient Fright, Kate's response was boldly "I know creepy when I see it."

severed girl

In Cambodia

Taken in Seim Reap, Cambodia 2008. Photoshop curves was the only tool used.

Ambient Fright: Meet Judge No. 002

Profile

Name: David

Age: 10

Occupation: Baseball player

Location: Texas

Favorite scary book: More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, written by Alvin Schwartz and illustrated by Stephen Gammell

Hobbies: Going to his friends house and playing video games

Notes: Also not afraid of the dark, David does think it's scary if you "hear a voice and no one is there." For this Halloween, you may hunt him down terrorizing some neighborhoods in Texas. But come armed with silver bullets, as he'll be a werewolf. What may you ask, makes David a good judge for creepy photos? "That I am smart."

Howloween

Ambient Fright: Meet Judge No. 001

Profile

Name: Hayden

Age: 7

Occupation: School

Location: Texas

Favorite scary book: any Goosebumps by R.L. Stine

Hobbies: Playing games and tag outside with friends

Notes: Hayden isn't afraid of the dark, but does find ghosts scary. For Halloween, he describes "I'll be a skeleton carrying an axe." Many may also know this as the Grim Reaper. In regards to what makes Hayden a great judge for the contest, he briefly explains "because nothing scares me."

Scaredy Cat

So Matt's Phantom Cat post below was so awesome I'm not even going to compete with it, however it reminded me I HAD to go dig this number up to post as a sibling/collaboration post to his. This was taken a few years ago of my friend's cat –and yes he is a little freaked out by everything all the time, so this is sort of a captured 'portrait' if you will!

I think his owner was making him dance and pose like a cat-puppet, which I'm sure just traumatized him further...

*Only curve adjustments were done to get richer black and brighter white.