2014 Sony World Photography Award

commended in people category of the open class

 

This email made my day...

Dear Tom,
We are delighted to announce that your image has been commended in the top 50 images in the People Category in the Open Competition of the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards. Your work has been selected from 139,554 images entered from 166 countries. This is an incredible achievement. 

Your name will be announced to press and on our website on 4th February and the winners of each category will be announced on 18th March. All the UK shortlisted and finalist images will go on show at Somerset House, London, from 1-18 May as part of the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition. 
 

 

The allure of natural light

In a world of photography which is huge and varied, with subjects and stories everywhere from suburban streets to war-torn photojournalism, almost nothing is off limits. The many photographic verities, techniques and styles will always make for an exciting art form for both creators and viewers alike. For me, portraiture is the one genre that I keep coming back to, both as a photographer and viewer. In portraiture, I find uniqueness and emotion, more than any other style. Unique, because every person is different and each can express that difference in so many ways; emotion, because nothing communicates more than our own bodies, faces and eyes.

There are many ways to execute a beautiful portrait, but I think chief amongst them is natural light. Apart from being free, by minimising additional artificial lighting technologies, it allows for a more straightforward shoot. Being able to see the light through the viewfinder allows more time to think about what’s important: composition, expression and pose. I think this casual and lightweight method is less intimidating and can create beautifully simple yet powerful images.

A striking exponent of this method is Aleksandra Patova, her beautiful portraits express everything that is best about using natural light. Aleksandra’s use of natural light has created, for me, a collection of images which are almost a signature and her understanding of shadow and dappled light to add dimension to her work is both enriching and enchanting. It quite simply elevates her portraits above so much of what I see and like.

You can see more of Aleksandra’s excellent work, here on her Flickr photosteam Alex-Malex.

© All Rights Reserved | Aleksandra Patova 2014

The Happy Accident

More often than not, a mistake is just that... a mistake. It wasn't what was intended and as such, can be disappointing or frustrating. A worst case scenario is the passing moment that's just not repeatable; best case is you learn something from it. That's unless what you find is the elusive happy accident. The unintentional fault, error or miscalculation turned into an unexpected stroke of luck.

As rare as this is, most photographers have in some way experienced this good fortune. Some time ago, I wound on a film past 38 frames and snapped it out of the can in the back of the camera. Believing I had safely retrieved it in my darkened bathroom, half the frames were, in fact, fogged. Amongst the negatives was this image, my very own 'happy accident'. I don't know what happened, but I was pleased with the result. It's an image that I could never reproduce and a reminder never to force the winding lever on a camera. When I first saw Ode to the Imperfection by my friend Nico Westlicht, I was struck by its striking composition and graphic arrangement, but the truth was a little more complicated:

‘You are in an evocative place with your camera, the tripod, the light meter, your wonderful muse posing for you, ready to shoot. The afternoon light is perfect, and you decide to finally use that expensive Fuji Provia roll you bought some time ago. Basically, I had all the ingredients for a perfect photo-shooting. But what happens, then? Well, what happens is under your eyes: either I was not able to fully turn the wind lever, or the camera is not that reliable. I still have to investigate the cause of the superimposing pictures, but you can easily imagine how the huge expectations crashed badly this morning. Well, film photography can be frustrating at times, but I still find it much more exciting than digital photography. Still, I swear to myself that every time I will shoot a nice picture I will look back at this one as a lesson for the future, to remind myself how easy it is to fail even though you don't expect to’. 

Fuji Provia 400X | Pentacon Six TL © All Rights Reserved | Nico Westlicht 2014

I still simply love the central image; arresting the viewer to look at the picture as a whole, the fabulous colours and the graphic light and dark lines. It became for me one of the best triptychs I had seen in ages; a true happy accident if I ever saw one and as I said to Nico at the time 'You may have been disappointed but I can assure you I'm not'.  You can see more of Nico's great photos on his website nicowestlicht.com

What's in a name?

What's in a name?  I had often been tempted by the idea that a photo should just speak for itself; that the artist need not influence the viewer with anything other than the image. No explanation is necessary 'make what you will of what you see'.  Some people even believe that a good photograph does not need written guidance. I reckon that's missing the point; of course, a photo does not need a title but when it has one, one that compliments it, an audience can derive understanding, benefit, insight, curiosity, enjoyment and sometimes even puzzlement. A title, like a name, makes sharing easier, telling others about a photo in conversation by referring to its title rather than 'the one with the man walking on the wet pavement' or 'that one with the girl standing in the snow wearing a red scarf'. 

I love this photo by Ellen Goodman of St. Louis, Missouri. A little girl looking into the distance, it's cute domesticity meets artistic storytelling at its best. But with its title 'Gunslinger Stance during Hopscotch Delay' everything comes together completely. Her hands become important elements, she looks like she means business and you wouldn't mess with her. In short, a memorable image becomes unforgettable and a perfect example of what's in a name.

© All Rights Reserved | Ellen Goodman 2014

You can see more of Ellen's excellent photography on her Flickr photostream Analog Girl in a Digital World