Post Report: Asian Geographic Images of Asia (IOA) Photography Competition

0
818

The ASIAN Geographic Images of Asia photography competition exhibits the work of photographers from all across Asia, culminating in a night of appreciation and celebration.

 

The night began with a 200-strong crowd of ASIAN Geographic fans and photographers admiring the exhibition of finalist photographs in the exquisite Peninsula Excelsior Hotel on Coleman Street before the start of the event.

In addition to goodie bags and the latest issues of ASIAN Geographic and Asian Diver given out to every participant, early birds also received an exclusive copy of Loving Sharks, a stunning photo book of underwater shark pictures by acclaimed photographer John A. Scarlett.

 

As the competition kicked off, every seat in the house was filled thanks to a tremendous turnout from friends, supporters and sponsors.

Guests had the opportunity to rub shoulders with esteemed figures in the international photography circle and mingle with like-minded photography enthusiasts. As they tucked into a delectable spread of dim sum, artisanal cheesecakes and tiramisu served by the hotel’s attentive staff, the live judging proceeded in front of the crowd’s riveted eyes.

The five judges of the night were: José Jeuland, David Tay, Triston Yeo, Manuel Librodo and John Thet, who between them have almost a decade of photo and photography experience. Jeuland, Yeo, Tay and Librodo are also acclaimed international photographers who have membership in some of the most prestigious photography societies worldwide and held their own exhibitions.

 

In addition, Triston Yeo was the Canon Singapore spokesperson for the night.

During the live judging, the panel was presented with the top 5 entries in each category, namely: Portrait, Street, Environmental, Wildlife, Architecture/Landscape, and Youth categories. The judges had a few seconds to view each photograph, and then immediately presented their individual score cards to the crowd.

 

Scores fell within a narrow range when the judges were in agreement, but the few times that the judges did not agree on their opinions of a photo often ended in hilarity.

Much to the amusement of the crowd, judge Triston Yeo often voiced his opinion (not shared by other judges) that many of the pictures were staged in the Environmental Photographer of the Year category. This pattern was set when, mere moments after Manuel Librodo waxed lyrical about the virtues of how the first picture in the series spoke to him, Yeo exclaimed, with great conviction, that the authenticity of the photo was exceedingly improbable, drawing roars of laughter from the crowd.

After six waves of incredible photos were dissected by the panel, the scores were tabulated and the victors were crowned.

The winner of the Street category is: Dragon Dance by Ng Kah Soon.

Images of Asia
Dragon Dance (Photo © Ng Kah Soon)

The winner of the Environmental category is: Burning Garbage by Zay Yar Lin.

Burning Garbage (Photo © Zay Yar Lin)

The winner of the Wildlife category is: The Big Curiosity by Christian Loader.

The Big Curiosity (Photo © Christian Loader)

The winner of the Architecture/Landscape category is: The Ancient Times by Ki Hwan.

The Ancient Times (Photo © Ki Hwan)

The winner of the Youth category is: Safety by Ankit Kumar.

Safety (Photo © Ankit Kumar)

The winner of the Portrait category is: The Master by Donell Gumiran.

Images of Asia
The Master (Photo © Donell Gumiran)

Disclaimer:

The original Portrait Photographer of the Year winner, Alamsyah Rauf, was disqualified post-event. Our checks revealed that his entry, The Soulmate, previously won the Xposure Photography Competition 2016, which violates Images of Asia submission guidelines that entries must not have won any photography competitions prior. Judges subsequently declared Donell Gumiran the winner.

 

The Soulmate (Photo © Alamsyah Rauf)

Each winner won USD 1,000, while the Youth Photographer of the Year walked away with a Canon EOS M10 camera with a 15-45mm kit lens. All the prizes were generously sponsored by our main sponsor, Canon Singapore.

The end of the competition heralded the start of the Singapore Divers’ Party, which saw guest speakers giving presentations about photography and marine conservation.

Photographer Jose Jeuland shared some of his most captivating projects, such as Longevity Okinawa, Vedda, and Hill Tribe, while photographer Manuel Librodo spoke of capturing his models at different stages in their life.

Underwater photographers Indra Swari and Mawvi Rahim also shared about their her love for macro photography and the importance of framing to create angles and borders in his images.

Many guests who came for the Images of Asia photography competition were thrilled to join in the lucky draw, with a chance to win up to $6,500 worth of prizes.

 

Congratulations to the winners of the ASIAN Geographic Images of Asia photography competition! Fans who wish to take part in next year’s competition, visit our webpage at Images of Asia 2018!

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here