I am a big fan of any photography, whether it be landscape, fashion, sport or even just some snaps out and about with mates! You always manage to catch at least one gem in every session. I have been looking at some of the pictures that were entered into this Nat Geo competition and let me tell you they are amazing! There has evidently been quite a bit of photo shop manipulation, but what would photography be without that wonderful programme? Every second picture we see now days has been manipulated post production and that is no different when it comes to magazines, landscapes and fashion shoots!
I know you guys all enjoy a good photo, so here is a sneak peek of the 4 main winners. The categories included People, Places and Nature. Well done to all the entrants and congrats on some extremely awesome shots! Photographers from around the world submitted more than 16,000 pictures to the contest, which was open for entries from September 16 until November 30, 2010. My personal favourite is the one of the valley, maybe because I am a hippy, but it definitely warrants being a winner!
People
In the winning picture in the People category is an Indonesian farmer and his buffalo charge through the mud—”an epic scene” in the words of contest judge Joel Sartore.
Farmers literally put a lot of stock into winning these annual races, which they believe will bring them luck during the upcoming growing season, according to photographer Chan Kwok Hung of Hong Kong.
Sartore, a contributing photographer for National Geographic magazine, said that “peak action, interesting subject matter, and a soft background all combined to make this image a winner.”
Places
Workers expose a ship’s innards in Chittagong, Bangladesh, one of the world’s biggest ship graveyards.
Despite its unsafe work practices and pollution, the city represents “one of the biggest industry and job opportunities for many Bangladeshis,” noted photographer Jana Asenbrennerova of San Francisco.
“I like how the photographer decided to shoot this quite tight, so we only see portions of the ship,” said judge Sadie Quarrier, a National Geographic magazine senior photo editor. “This allows the eye to wander around and inspect all of the various pipes, parts, and people.”
Nature (Grand Prize Winner)
A canceled trek turned into the opportunity of a lifetime for photographer Aaron Lim Boon Teck, who captured an active Indonesianvolcano in his image “Eruption of Gunung Rinjani.”
“Trekkers [who] were able to make it up to the crater rim on time [were] able to camp overnight to witness the eruption [the] whole night long,” Boon Teck, of Singapore, wrote with his submission to the 2010 National Geographic Photography Contest. “I wanted to share with everyone this experience of seeing many elements going on at a particular point in time.”
Contest judge Joel Sartore said, “This image best represented the craft of photography.
“Not only is the light subtle and beautiful, and not only is it a lovely scene, but there’s a volcanic eruption going on in the background,” said Sartore, a contributing photographer to National Geographic magazine.
National Geographic magazine senior photo editor and judge Sadie Quarrier noted that combining multiple images into one stitched image “gives us a wide, powerful, and unique view.”
As the grand-prize winner, Boon Teck’s photograph will be published in National Geographic magazine. He’ll also receive U.S. $10,000 and a trip to attend a photography seminar at National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Special Mention
In a runner-up image by U.S. photographer Sean Heavey, a supercell thunderstorm roars across a prairie in Montana. These colossal storms include mesocyclones, rotating updrafts that can deliver torrential rain and tornadoes, according to NASA.
No. 1 for me