S.C. Man wins DU photo contest

Scott J. McWatty of Lexington has won the Best Overall photo in the annual Ducks Unlimited photo contest.

Here is an excerpt from the May / June issue of DU magazine:

Scott McWatty had a problem. As a waterfowler and amateur nature photographer, he always liked pictures of hunters silhouetted against a rising or setting sun. He wanted to take one of these striking images himself, but he often hunted alone. Ultimately, he had to take one of himself.

He captured this winning image at dawn while duck hunting in his home state of South Carolina. 'When the sunlight began to crack the horizon, I began goofing around with my camera, trying to get a good shot of the scene and then it hit me! I had my tripod and remote wireless shutter release, so I set up the camera to attempt the shot I have always wanted to capture, me and my decoys silhouetted against the rising sun.'
The photograph required a long exposure, and McWatty remained perfectly still as the camera absorbed the scene's faint light. 'I ended up with a pair of drake buffleheads and a wigeon that morning, but the real prize was this image,' he says.

To view past blog entries about Ducks Unlimited in S.C. click here.

Use the link to see the full story:

http://www.ducks.org/du-magazine/picture-perfect?poe=fb