Sunday, January 30, 2011

2011 Kick-Off: Judging and Being Judged

Año Dos Zero Uno Uno dropped with an email from the folks at Photo District News Magazine notifying that some of my 2010 images had been selected for their annual World In Focus professional travel photography awards.  PDN is a photo-industry magazine and sums up the recognition: "World In Focus teamed up with National Geographic Traveler to find the most innovative and inspiring travel images captured by professional photographers around the world."

Though I didn't nab the grand prize (that honor was bestowed upon an exploding Icelandic volcano--and those are generally tough to beat), I was awiggled to learn that my pictures were chosen for three of the five total categories: "Sense of Place" for an image of a South Korean bus station, "Spontaneous Moments" for a street scene in India, and "Photo Essay" for portraits of tourists at the Taj Majal.

PDN Magazine: "Photo Essay" for portraits of tourists at the Taj Majal--top
While being judged for World In Focus, I also played judge @ The Daily Randonneur's annual photo contest for endurance cyclists.  I started my career by making pictures of endurance cycling trips and it was nice to get back to my roots while sifting through edits of smiling (sometimes grimacing) pedal pushers.

If you're keen on checking out some other 2011 picture-props, Adventure Journal ran my image of a "Mystic Indian Cyclist" and Photoshelter dropped my "India on Two Wheels" gallery in their weekly "shout out" blog.

PDN Magazine: "Sense of Place" for an image of a South Korean bus station--bottom left
PDN Magazine: "Spontaneous Moments" for a street scene in India--bottom left