HOW I GOT THE SHOT: Chanukah is a time of renewal. Significantly outnumbered, the Maccabees succeeded against great odds by combining strategy, devotion to God and a willingness to sacrifice themselves in their battle against both assimilation and religious persecution. They returned to rededicate the ransacked and desecrated temple with renewed faith and hope for the future. This photograph was taken on the fourth night of Chanukah in a hotel I visited three years ago. The table had been covered with aluminum foil to facilitate the removal of wax drippings, and it created an interesting glow that warms the background. I chose the camera angle that best emphasized this interesting background light. I didn't have a tripod, so I bumped the ISO up high enough to be able to shoot handheld and used a wide aperture to blur the background as much as possible.
The lights of Chanukah remind us to renew our faith and courage to meet even the darkest challenges of our day. Chag Sameach.
TECHNICAL DATA: Nikon D-200, 18-70 mm zoom at 70mm, f4.5 at 1/80 sec., ISO 640.
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