February 2026 Photo Contest Winners: Shadows as Subjects

[Dahlia Ambrose]

We’re happy to announce the winner of February’s competition, “Shadows as Subjects.”

The “Shadows as Subjects” Photo Contest

Shadows are powerful elements in photography and they decide how an image looks – subtle, soft and elegant or high contrasty and dramatic. Without shadows, an image can look very flat and shadows help to add depth and dimension to images.

Besides these, shadows can be used in many ways in photography. They can be used to frame subjects, can be used as leading lines, etc., and hence can work as powerful compositional tools. Shadows can also be the subject which can add a layer of mystery and intrigue to a photo.

Here are some ways in which shadows can be used as subjects in photography – using shadows as the main subject by creating striking compositions with high contrast and silhouettes, capturing the intricate patterns created by shadows in natural light, focusing on their form and texture, exploring how shadows interact with urban landscapes, using long exposure to enhance their dramatic effect or creating images where shadows play a key role in setting the mood or conveying emotion.

When choosing the winning photos, we wanted to make sure that the decision process was based on a good interpretation of the theme, followed by other factors like light, composition, story, details, creative vision, etc. The results are entirely subjective and there are no losers in any competition as we all know.

Here are February’s Winners:

First Place: “House of the shadows” by Jean T @jeant

House of the shadows – Copyright Jean T

Jean submitted a very intriguing image titled “House of the shadows” and it almost looks like the house is wrapped around by the shadows of the trees. The dramatic light and shadows, along with the icicles and snow make the image look mysterious but at the same time lends a mood that is quite hard to describe.

Jean’s wise choice in choosing to convert the image to black and white has worked really well, letting the viewer focus on the textures, light, shadows and the atmosphere in the frame without getting distracted by the colours. It is a cold day but the warm sunlight definitely makes the building worthy of being photographed.

Congratulations Jean T on this beautifully captured photo.

Second Place: “Guiding Light in the Dark of Night” by Stefanie Markham @stef

Guiding Light in the Dark of Night – Copyright Stefanie Markham

Stefanie submitted this beautiful abstract photo of shadows that are the subjects in this image. Although unsure what casts these shadows, Stefanie’s decision to remove the source from the frame and capture the shadows in an abstract form is a clever execution of abstract photography.

Besides, Stefanie has used the door where the shadows are falling as a natural frame while composing the shot. The different shades of the repetitive pattern and the powerful composition make it a great submission for the contest. Congratulations Stefanie.

Third Place: “Long Way From Home” by Edward P @edwardp

Long Way From Home – Copyright Edward P

Edward’s submission titled “Long Way From Home” is a very powerful image that has captured the emotions perfectly well. Edward has chosen to compose the shot this way to show that his subject still has a long way to go – walking out of the frame really helps to feel a sense of hope, isolation, distance etc.

Although the light is quite hard, and the scene is mostly white, the red of the subject’s jacket really adds a pop of colour in the frame. The long shadow works great as a leading line pointing or guiding the viewer straight to the subject. Not sure if the image was cropped heavily as it would have been good to see some more sharp details of the subject. Congratulations on this beautiful storytelling shot Edward.

People’s Choice Award Winner

Our monthly photo contests also come with a People’s Choice Award. The winner of this part of the contest receives $100 worth of store credit on Light Stalking which they can spend as they please on our blueprints, drills, courses or Presets.

The most popular photo for February, voted by the contestants was “Guiding Light in the Dark of Night” by Stefanie Markham @stef which also won the second place in the competition.

Guiding Light in the Dark of Night – Copyright Stefanie Markham

These are announced on the main blog as well 🙂

cc: @admin-2

[Pat Garrett]

Congratulations to all the winners. Wonderful images and very imaginative.

[Patrick]

Congratulations Winners all well deserved , nice works folks .

[Stefanie Markham]

Thank you for this honor.  I am quite pleasantly surprised that this moment met the challenge.  The shadow was cast by my car headlight shining onto the handle of a canvas tote bag in my garage.  It is ridiculously simplistic but an intriguing image to me nonetheless.

[Wendy P]

Nice work!

[Jean T]

Thank you so much for choosing my photo as the winning photo! It is a greatly appreciated honor.

Congratulations to the winners and all the other participants. There were many great ideas and some truly beautiful creations.

This house, built in 1845, is part of a historic site that has been occupied since 1740. I like to believe that the house and these trees have lived together through all four seasons since 1845, and that they have become very good friends !

[Retired Grunt]

Hooah! Congrats to the winners!!

[Author]

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