Situated in the beautiful Italian hills of Tuscany, Siena is truly a place to be inspired and the perfect location for a creative meet. Indeed, on 29 October 2016 several of the world’s top photographers gathered for the second annual Siena International Photo Awards.
“We have accomplished the remarkable achievement of bringing photographers from across the globe to Siena, united by their passion for photography,” said SIPA’s creator and artistic director, Luca Venturi.
The top prize was awarded to French photographer Greg Lecoeur for a captivating underwater shot taken off the South African coast. Entitled ‘Sardine Run’, it features hundreds of the fish in mass migratory transit as multiple predators attempt to feed on them. Having spent his life dedicated to ocean photography, Lecoeur is already the recipient of multiple awards.
‘Sharing Resources’ /Audun Rikardsen /Wildlife category WINNER /SIPA
Norwegian photographer Audun Rikardsen may not have grabbed the grand prize but was a likely close second as he won not one but two first place awards.
His Wildlife entry, ‘Sharing Resources’, is an awe-inspiring photograph captured in the Norwegian winter seas, depicting a curious whale swimming under a fishing vessel. Rikardsen used a single exposure camera with custom-made underwater housing to get the shot.
‘Arctic urban skiing’ /Audun Rikardsen /Sports category WINNER /SIPA
Rikardsen’s other win was in the Sports category for a night-time ski jump shot. ‘Arctic urban skiing’, was taken in near-complete darkness, with long exposure and a specific choice of flash making the image possible. For these efforts, and for coming third in the Storyboard category, Rikardsen was given the title of Best Author of the contest.
‘Refugee stream’ series /Jacob Ehrbahn / Storyboard category WINNER /SIPA
The first place winner of the Storyboard category was a fellow Scandinavian; Danish photographer Jacob Ehrbahn. His photojournalistic reportage series entitled ‘Refugee stream’, charts the journey of migrants from the Middle East to the Mediterranean island of Lesbos. Heartbreaking and visceral, it is deeply affecting.
‘Phan Rang Fishing Net Making’ /Danny Yen Sin Wong /Open Color category WINNER /SIPA
Malaysian photographer Danny Yen Sin Wong took the top prize in the Open Color category. ‘Phan Rang Fishing Net Making’ manages to make the actions of a Vietnamese fishing net weaver seem magical as the netting she is enveloped in resembles mysterious waves.
‘A man feeding swans in the snow’ /Marcin Ryczek /Open Monochrome category WINNER /SIPA
The winning entry for the Open Monochrome category, ‘A man feeding swans in the snow’ shows the pure power of perfect positioning. Polish photographer Marcin Ryczek, took a mundane event and framed it in a captivating fashion. The split between the darkness and light is emphasized even more in monochrome.
‘Strawberry Greenhouse’ /Leyla Emektar /Travel category WINNER /SIPA
Leyla Emektar put her homeland on display in the prize winning submission for the Travel category. ‘Strawberry Greenhouse’ shows the otherworldly sight of rows of multi-coloured tents in the Turkish countryside near Nazilli. A solitary worker hefting a basket stands apart from this seemingly infinite rainbow pattern.
‘Mother and son’ /Jiming Lv /People and Portrait category WINNER /SIPA
‘Mother and son’ was an unconventional image that took away the People and Portrait award. Rather than fall back on traditional poses of a baby in arms, Chinese photographer Jiming Lv balances a sleeping baby on a woman’s back. Both naked and in a state of calm comfort, it is both loving yet without saccharine overtones.
‘Sensazioni, Etna in eruzione’ /Giuseppe Mario Famiani /Nature category WINNER /SIPA
Resembling a nuclear blast, ‘Sensazioni, Etna in eruzione’ (Sensations, Etna erupting) captures the destructive power of nature in an equally majestic and terrifying fashion. Giuseppe Mario Famiani won the Nature category prize for this image which he captured during Etna’s eruption in 2015, which blasted material several kilometres skyward.
‘Warp Speed’ /Mike Holleman /Architecture category WINNER /SIPA
It was interesting to see some movement in the Architecture category since regardless of perfect composition, can be (by the nature of buildings) rather static. New Zealander Mike Holleman snapped a picture as he travelled on Tokyo’s Yurikamome train line. With some fantastic streaks of motion blur, the image’s title of ‘Warp Speed’ is totally warranted.
'Joy of a farmer' /Gianluca De Bartolo /Wine category WINNER /SIPA
Gianluca De Bartolo’s 'Joy of a farmer', is a much more quiet moment of humanity. Capturing a moment of joy for a Romanian peasant following the harvest, it won the prize in the offbeat category of Wine for the Italian photographer.
'Ofelia' /Krishna Vr /Student category WINNER /SIPA
The final category awarded a prize was the under 20’s Student prize, intended to promote the upcoming photography masters of tomorrow. However it’s pretty clear that Krishna Vr, the Mexican photographer who won this award, hasn’t got much left to learn. Her sultry, yet gothic piece of nude portraiture, 'Ofelia' shows a strong development of skills, technique, and an eye for concept.
On top of honouring some truly magnificent works by these talented artists in the field, SIPA served as but the opening stroke to a month long Art Photo Travel Festival. Running until 30 November in Siena, it will feature exhibitions, events, and workshops dedicated to the magic of photography.
Venturi commented on the success of the participants saying, “It is thanks to them and to all the partners who have assisted us that a dream has been transformed into an international event which has brought over three hundred people from across the globe to the city in this weekend alone".
To see full galleries of all the notable submissions and to find out more about the festival you can visit the SIPA site.
Cover Image: ‘Sardine Run’/Greg Lecoeur /SIPA Top Prize WINNER /SIPA
(Images used with permission)
. digitalrev.com2016-11-11 03:00