The winner of the $16,290 and Leica Monochrom from I-SHOT-IT!

April 15, 2014 Contests 35

ishotitwinners

The winner of the $16,290 and Leica Monochrom from I-SHOT-IT!

So did any of you here enter the last B&W Photo Competition from I-SHOT-IT? Click HERE to see the newly announced winners, including the winner of the Monochrom and the $16,000 cash. They already started the next B&W competition so if you think you have what it takes, and are in the mood for some healthy competition then CLICK HERE To check it out.

Congratulations to the winner!

Steve

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35 Comments

  1. It is a bit after the fact for this thread; but there is a new B&W completion on ISI now that ends in 19 days (02 July ’14). I just found out about ISI through Thorsten Overgaard’s site (though have followed Steve Huff’s reviews for some time) and am intrigued. I have never entered a photo competition (aside from university applications), and am very eager to begin using the Leica Monochrom but can not realistically afford one of my own.
    So it would seem that many of the contestants and the judges themselves favor images that have the Leica aesthetic, and with respectable results. I think the most recent winner definitely deserved it, but that both contestant and judges could have perhaps done a better job in explaining why the image is so successful. I found the thesis and critique both juvenile for the subject presented and the prize being offered.
    So, I’m an American expatriate photographer now living in Göteborg, Sweden. I shoot with a Hasselblad 503CW and it never leaves my side. I shoot TRI-X 400, process, scan, and digitally correct as I have not yet found a darkroom in town (and it’s very expensive here. My work explores the mirrored relationship between nature, architecture, and the continued expansion and digestion of both, concurrently. As such my work does not regularly feature people in “situations”.
    Long story short…do square format images devoid of subjective action have a chance in these contests?
    Apologies for the long post. Thanks for reading.

  2. Personally I love the winning image. I can’t help but feel a real sense of grief looking at it. I see a wife and daughter who have lost their husband/dad and think back to the death of my own father. I have no clue if that is what really happened here but a great photo conveys feelings and creates feelings in the viewer, this photo does both. The second place shot while cool makes me feel nothing. Just my 2 cents.

  3. most of the pictures on the page I like a lot…most of them has inspiring composition

    my favourite one is photo of womens in cafeterie …I think is London St. Paul cathedral behind…that photo has perfect composition

  5. I hate to be another naysayer here, but I too have a hard time taking this competition seriously. I am consistently confused by what these judges consider to be winning photos.

    Nothing against Birgit or Thorston, I enjoy the work they both do, but perhaps these competitions would benefit from some variety in the judging panel.

  6. Smart ! Leica’s advertising while making people pay 20$ to enter a “photo contest” with half that money entries given to the winner (and of course a Leica body which only a few people can afford… ).
    And I don’t even speak about the way they judge……………. But it’s sooo subjective, of course everybody must feel to be a potential winner………….. 😉
    That’s not “the best photo competition” to me, just Marketing !..

    Ps: that’s been said, there are some nice pictures…

  8. Each individual unique art style that is very difficult to judge how bad. Are among many people judge approved the same.

  9. Almost every other image on the page should have won over the supposed “winning” image. It looks so “staged” and devoid of any true emotion. I’m with Corvus! “Boo”!

    • Maybe the two women on the bed are Scientologists and it takes another one to really “get it”.

  10. I do look at most of the images that are submitted for the I-SHOT-IT quarterly contest and find little to crow about. My editor used to have me enter statewide newspaper photography contests and I won my share of plaques and accolades. But I also discover that any contest is very subjective.

    “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” In any artistic competition, the “beauty” that one judge sees is laughed at by another judge. No reason to get antagonistic just because you do not care for the winning image.

    Enter or don’t enter, that is your choice. But I see no reason to downplay another person’s work. The winning photographer may or may not have the best image in another’s opinion but he/she did enter it for better or for worse. I congratulate all the winners even if I do not see what the judges saw.

  12. I just got out of bed this morning and have my hair disorganized like Bozo the clown and a nose strip on! Ill bet I could have won with that shot!!!!

  13. I always find them so depressing, the black and white photos. For me shooting monochrome is about getting less distraction from color, so lines, textures and the subject shows well. It often seems though that when it’s about monochromatic, it has to be raw, gritty, dramatic and often utterly depressing to look at.
    The same trend I notice in color photos, they are often desaturated, or some get a grey layer. Also I wonder if some photos shouldn’t be b&w at all, like the fish.

    I like to capture interesting things I see how they are, not create a picture with a fake atmosphere on a computer. I’ll probably never make it:-) And perhaps they could organize a cheerful b&w photo contest for a change?

  15. A number of the photos recognized by the judges seemed very good to me, even if a little familiar. In my personal taste, this website (among others) publishes “inspirations” from time to time that are every bit as good, and some that are quite a bit better.

    I was surprised how many of the photos begged for color. It is a rare photo that loses both emotion and context from the lack of color, but they managed to find several. This competition is one of the few visual arguments I have seen for not buying the amazing Leica Monochrom.

  17. Such a shame that this is what is considered to be great B&W photography nowadays. Does nothing but reaffirm my belief that these “competitions” are just marketing devices.

  18. Congratulations to all the winners! 1954 was indeed an excellent year for photography, and I can well understand the judges’ desire to stop the clock there and pretend nothing has happened since.

  20. I’ll never try this competition, if that’s what the judges consider a winner. What was Thorsten thinking? Perhaps his friend took the ‘winning’ photo. Boo! I say BOO!

    • I’m with Corvus on this one.
      The photo is ok, but the judges’ reasoning of why it won is contrived, almost comical. Reminds me of introductory college level art class.
      If only it was taken with a Leica. Oh wait..

      The Kiss photo on the other hand is sensational. Drama, danger and incredible timing. Plus the possible sacrifice of the equipment!

      Here’s a test. Which photo will you remember 1 week, 1 day, heck, 5 minutes from now?

      • I agree that the instant impact of the “kiss” photo is way stronger, in my opinion I do believe if the category was “street photography” then that shot nailed it in all aspects in that essence.

        BUT when I sit down and think about the winning photo, it is more then timing, composition, technique, risk factor, difficulty. The winning photo to me had soul, it had heart, emotions and a story that could be portrayed in so many different ways and levels that it should not be described one way or another. It has room for your mind to wonder and imagine, that I think in a way is much more powerful in that respect.

      • Agreed. Personally, I make it a point never to enter competitions. Photography is art. And art is about personal expression, not competing with other artists. Trying to objectify someone else’s subjective expression is a bit like trying to explain the color red to someone who’s blind.

        Opinions are also HIGHLY subjective. Frankly, several of those Mark of Excellence images that were chosen wouldn’t even make it into my portfolio. But once again, that’s my own objective opinion. Others may love them.

        • Absolutely right, and indeed art is a personal thing but this time it really does not matter…..

        • That’s very well put, Robert, and I’ll try to remember that everytime I think I’m not good enough. I’ve always been fascinated with everything I see around me, and the way light influences it. I started photographing to capture those moment the best way possible.

    • I like the kiss, but my personal favourite was the one on the stairs. I just loved the look of it.

    • I would never enter this one either because of the style of image needed to win, which I can’t do (yet). But I have entered some others … When you look at past winners its clear that the Judges have a preference for images with “People” and which invite “questions” – and for this simple winning image one can ask many questions.

      IMO its the best photo of the lot for that criteria. Some of the others are technically better, or more difficult to create, but that’s not really what the judges are looking for.

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