Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2018 i Australian Photography

Here it is, the wrap-up of our prestigious annual photo competition, Photographer of the Year presented by Panasonic. Purely by the numbers, 2017 was our biggest yet; the most entries, with more than 2,100, and the most categories and judges, with eight and 15, respectively. We kept the categories fundamentally the same for this year, but for the first time we did open the door to professionals in our Pro Photo of the Year category. Despite this, the competition remains at its heart an amateur photography competition, and one we believe highlights the very best work of non-professional photographers in Australia and New Zealand. It also happens to be a useful bellwether of trends in photography. We had expected to see an influx of drone shots in 2017 based on…

ADVENTURE THIS MONTH'S WINNER MICHAEL COLLISON Foggy paddle adventure EDITOR’S COMMENTS Michael Collison says this photo was taken on an early morning kayaking trip at Tallowa Dam, Morton National Park. “I’ve been traveling down here from Sydney for the past 15 years with my father and I’ve never seen it this foggy before,” he says. “For this shot I made sure to steady my kayak and used a fast shutter speed to minimize any camera shake and just waited for my Dad to enter the frame to give the scene a foreground interest.” There’s a lovely balance to this shot helped by your careful framing and just enough of the hill in the background being revealed to give a sense of scale. What works so well is there is a…

WINNER 2017 LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR BEAUTY OF NORTH ISLAND OF NEW ZEALAND Tim Fan is an amateur landscape photographer and full-time mortgage lender based in Sydney. Since picking up his first DSLR just three years ago, he has honed his skills shooting landscapes around Australia and New Zealand. “I love nature and exploring new places, using my camera to catch those brilliant moments on the go,” he says. For this portfolio, he turned his lens on New Zealand’s North Island – a place he first visited in 2014 when, as he says, he was ‘still reading his camera’s menu’. Shot on a return trip three years later, these four winning images are the result. “The most memorable experience was shooting at the Three Sisters near New Plymouth,” he…

WINNER 2017 BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR SHAPES OF ARCHITECTURE While we don’t know if Brisbane-based photographer Matthew Tuffield could win Photographer of the Year’s Black and White category with one hand tied behind his back, we do know he has done it on one leg. Tuffield captured his winning architecture portfolio on crutches during a week-long visit to Sydney and Melbourne while recovering from an ankle injury. With the help of two friends who generously lugged his camera gear all over town he managed to capture the four stunning images you see here. “Due to the exhaustion of trying to get around on crutches while capturing long-exposure images, I was not able to visit every location I had previously researched,” he says. It’s frightening to think what…

I’ve previously captured movement a number of times through various long exposure techniques but never from a moving vehicle. However, on a recent trip to Japan the opportunity arose when my travelling companions and I boarded the Rainbow Bridge monorail in Tokyo. It was towards the end of our month long trip and I almost didn’t go as I was feeling fatigued after shooting for almost 30 days. It was the the kind of day that sweat appears in areas on your body that have never experienced sweat before, and after a day of shooting on the streets in the hot and humid Tokyo summer, it was such a relief to be greeted by the crisp air conditioned carriage. Suffice to say there were many local eyes on us when…

WINNER 2017 PEOPLE AND PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR CONEY ISLAND 17 Yunis Tmeizeh says he’s always looked at everyday life as if it were a composition. He has a love for candid photography, and says he uses a journalists’ or sports photographers’ technique of a fast shutter speed in his quest to seek a poetic interpretation of a scene. His striking, layered portfolio is the result of an excursion to New York’s Coney Island, a place he describes as a mecca for candid photography of the kind he loves. Captured in summer, he says “It is rich with everyday characters and a vibe that was buzzing with people just letting loose.” The result is a series of interesting characters captured in intriguing moments, encouraging the viewer to return again…

Recently I was asked to visit the local Orchid Society in Hobart to photograph their winning orchids and displays. I consider the orchid the most difficult flower to photograph. This is because the fusion of the male and female parts is a key identification feature of the orchid family, and as such it is vital to photograph the detail. The three sepals, the three petals, the complex labellum, stigmatic surface, and the column all need to be captured. The challenge here is the depth of field and available light. Most orchids are placed or grow in clusters or in close proximity to other orchids making them hard to isolate and eliminate from distracting backgrounds. The halls where flower shows are typically held often have bright and contrasty light and usually…

KUVRD LAUNCH UNIVERSAL LENS CAPS IF you’re looking for a universal lens cap to replace that one you lost and never got round to replacing, the new Kuvrd universal lens cap might be just the ticket. Unlike regular lens caps, the Kuvrd is both dustproof and waterproof, and being made of silicon, can keep your lenses safe while stretching to fit most lens diameters from 60mm to 150mm. Uniquely, if stretched over the front and back of your lens, the Kuvrd creates a shock absorption effect which will in turn protect its contents, making it perfect for covering your lenses that might sit loose in a bag or pocket. You can also stack Kuvrds on top of themselves and on your lenses to increase bump protection. Versatile and compressible, the…

OVERALL WINNER 2017 PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR WINNER 2017 WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR TALE OF THE TURTLE Jordan Robins’ outstanding portfolio is not only successful because of the technical challenges that come with shooting underwater, but also for its diversity and beauty. For the 24-year old Jervis Bay native, the series is simply an extension of his background in science and love for the ocean. “Some of the images had been taken on a windy morning, with small waves breaking over the dome of my camera,” he explains. “These images contrast the wild and rough conditions on the surface with the calm and peacefulness beneath.” With over-unders, detail shots and images for context, the result is a standout portfolio that wowed our judges and demonstrated the very best of…

WINNER 2017 TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR ACROSS THE PASS Kristyn Taylor’s portfolio Across the pass was the product of an extraordinary trip to the Ladakh region of Northern India in April 2017. “Snow had severed the telecommunication cable linking the region of Ladakh, in the Indian Himalayas, to the rest of the world and it had not yet been repaired,” she explains. “With the weather still inclement, two guides and I prepared to cross the Khardung La, the highest motorable pass in the world accessible to civilians. On this occasion, Khardung La was snowed in, so we took the Chang La route instead. Over the course of a month I criss-crossed these two magnificent passes four times, skirting landslides, avalanches and white outs.” Along the way, Taylor was able…

Hellissandur is a village on the northwest tip of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula in western Iceland. “Coming around the peninsula I sighted the church up on a hill overlooking the valley below,” says Kewley. “On the right hand side is a road and a house, so to get this shot I ventured into a paddock and looked back and up towards the church just as the clouds parted and the sun streamed down on to the church. Some call this ‘Gods Light’, but in this case I was helped a little bit by Photoshop. “The image has had a few versions in mono and in colour with heavy overlays on both. All three have won acceptances and awards in Nationals and International competitions. “Iceland is a magic place for photography, at…

THIS MONTH'S WINNER HERE COMES THE SUN Donn Ledwidge said: “For the two weeks leading up to this morning, there had been rain clouds, so there was no dawn show. Colour for colour sake can be pretty boring, but this dawn was remarkable in its colour. Since the lookout is at 10,000 feet, the light was caught between two layers of clouds with just the rim of the volcano visible. Even the bus drivers in the car park were attracted to the view.” Yes, this is definitely spectacular, and you have pointed out the main issue with a lot of sunset (or sunrise) shots. What makes this even more extraordinary than just the colours is that it is an early morning scene, and I have seen many more good colourful…