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Snowy night, holiday lights add up to winning image

Snowy night, holiday lights at Morton Arboretum add up to winning image

Sometimes the most striking images can be found close to home.

"I'd been at the Morton Arboretum a number of times," Larry Lato said. "I live in Lisle. I'm only about a four-mile drive."

When he ventured to the Morton Arboretum in mid-December for the annual "Illumination" display, his camera caught the kaleidoscopic color painting the trees, a shot that won our January Photo Finish contest.

Daily Herald DuPage County Photo Director Bev Horne said she was impressed with the "vivid colors and composition" of the frame.

As contest winner, Lato will receive a $50 gift certificate from PJ's Camera in Glen Ellyn.

Despite the proximity of his residence to the garden and tree museum, Lato said it's tough for him to get there during the week because of the commute time involved in getting to and from his insurance claims adjuster job in Chicago.

"I was off on Friday, Dec. 16. I got there and it was snowing like crazy," he said.

The arboretum was about halfway through its annual tree lights celebration, which runs from November through January.

"I had in my backpack three lenses. I brought all three lenses with me with the intention of getting more fine arts shots," he said.

With the snow falling, he realized a lens change would compromise his equipment.

"It was so cold. It was probably 18 degrees. So, I started with the standard zoom lens. And I used a rain cover. It was just a matter of making sure I had it adjusted properly," he said.

The lens was a Tamron 24-70 and the rain cover was an Opteka.

"It was a quarter-second exposure. I had the ISO (light sensitivity) set at 400," he said.

Typically, more ISO is needed when less light is available, but there's a trade-off, so keeping the ISO relatively low is desirable, he said.

"If you crank up the ISO, you have distortion, which comes out with 'noise' on the picture," he said.

Lato said he used a tripod to steady the camera, resulting in a shot that presents the brilliant hues of the projected lights on the trees and fresh snow cover.

Lato, a previous winner of the Photo Finish contest, said he got started with photography about eight years ago. A member of the Naperville Photo Club, he recently joined the Naperville Art League. His work can be viewed at larrylatoimaging.com.

"I do a lot of waterfalls, landscape stuff, and I'm starting to get into lighthouses," he said.

He frequently travels throughout the Midwest looking for photo subjects.

"I try to get around and mix it up a little bit," he said. "What's interesting about this photo, I only had to drive four miles."

Larry Lato

About our contest

If you'd like to submit a photo, email it in .jpg format with at least 300 dpi resolution to dupagecontest@dailyherald.com. Be sure to include your name, address and a phone number, plus a description of where you took the photo, why you like it and what challenges you faced. The winner will receive a $50 gift certificate from PJ's Camera, Pickwick Place Plaza, 662 Roosevelt Road, Glen Ellyn.

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