Between rain, deer, and red wine, the second edition of "Sternberger Seenland kreativ" transformed nature into a stage for 60 breathtaking photographic subjects. With 1,000 visitors casting their votes, the competition was won by Wolfgang Lork from Zarnewanz, whose winning image required 4,000 camera shots and considerable time spent standing in water.
The open-air gallery was truly impressive, stretching approximately 160 feet across the grounds of the Archaeological Open-Air Museum in Groß Raden. Sixty nature photographs, captured by 16 photographers from across Germany, competed in the nature photography contest for public favor. The event was organized by museum director Heike Pilz and Seenland scout Christian Schumann as part of the "Sternberger Seenland kreativ" initiative.
"This is meant to become a new beacon for nature photography in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern," said Schumann. "We want to show how diverse the region is and demonstrate how much patience, skill, and passion goes into a single good photograph."
First place went to Wolfgang Lork from Zarnewanz near Tessin, with a spectacular shot of two great crested grebes. The photograph was taken under particularly challenging conditions.
"I stood in waders in the water for about two and a half hours," Lork explained, "and took over 4,000 pictures. In the end, I selected the best one."
His technique involves getting as close as possible while remaining inconspicuous. "I have a hide where you can lean against it. The camera is only a few centimeters above the water. That's why the horizon is so flat – it's typical of modern wildlife photography, always at eye level with the animals."
Lork's dedication to his craft is evident in his other projects. He spent six weeks on Hiddensee island to document a Kentish plover from hatching to first flight. "You lie in the sand for hours. It's not for people in a hurry," he noted.
Technically, Lork employs sophisticated equipment: "I photograph with a Canon R5 and a telephoto lens with up to 1,000 millimeters focal length, depending on the converter. This allows me to get very close without disturbing the animals."
His post-processing approach is efficient yet thorough: "One evening is enough. I sit down, go through the 4,000 images, delete 3,990 of them, and keep the best ten."
Christian Schumann understands the challenges of wildlife photography and knows how beginners can get started: "For beginners, I recommend our free observation towers in the Nossentiner Heide. They're located right in protected areas where ospreys and sea eagles hunt. You can find five to six such locations within a 50-kilometer radius on hiking maps."
For those wanting to delve deeper, Schumann also rents camouflaged hides. "Early morning into the hut, stay quiet, and then see what shows up. The animals don't notice that someone is sitting inside."
Schumann reports that camera memory cards often contain around 1,000 shots, most of which are very similar. In the evening, he enjoys sitting down with a glass of red wine to review and sort through the images. "The most beautiful part of the day is deleting photos in the evening with wine," he said with a wink. From such a series, perhaps ten really good images remain – the rest are consistently relegated to the digital trash. He emphasized that the image selection process is an essential part of the creative process.
Another highlight of the exhibition was a spectacular image of two common buzzards captured by Marco Papajewski from Berlin. The two birds of prey were engaged in a heated territorial dispute, observed unnoticed through the lens of a true professional.
"You go into the hide in the morning, sit quietly, and wait," Papajewski describes his work. "The animals logically don't realize you're there. Then you see things that otherwise remain hidden."
Papajewski also has clear opinions about equipment: "I photograph with a Nikon camera and a 500-millimeter prime lens. The lens alone costs between $6,500 and $7,500. A prime lens doesn't allow zooming, but delivers beautiful background blur – you can set focus very precisely."
Regarding camera settings, he adds: "I work with short exposure times, often 1/500 to 1/1000 of a second, because the animals are in motion. The ISO stays as low as possible – between 100 and 1,000 – depending on how much light is available."
Papajewski also enjoys the evening selection process: "The most beautiful thing is: you have 1,000 images on the chip, delete 900, and rejoice over the ten really successful ones."
The photography competition was embedded within a diverse market atmosphere. Vendors offered handicrafts, paintings, regional delicacies, and wellness services at 25 booths. Despite mixed weather, the mood remained sunny.
Schumann sees this as a beginning: "Today, Groß Raden is already the largest open-air gallery for nature photography in the state. Next year we want to show twice as many images. We want the Sternberger Seenland to become an attraction point – for nature lovers, photographers, and the curious."
The competition demonstrated that nature photography is more than just a beautiful picture. It requires patience, knowledge, technical skill, and often physical commitment – in rain, in water, in sand. Perhaps this is exactly the essence of this competition – a moment of tranquility, a glimpse into a wild world that reveals itself only to the patient observer.
