posted by Sharon Rainis on 2009/11/10
Epson Red Sea 2009
The Winning Ceremony (November 14th)
Although it is November, it seems like city of Eilat was fully aware of the amount of divers and photographers that specially arrived for the Epson Red Sea event and made sure that the last day of the competition is sunny, warm and welcoming. Divers spent most of their day on the beach or near the pool, relaxing after a very intensive and busy week and preparing themselves to the winning ceremony, hoping that they will get the chance to get up on stage tonight and to show off with their newly accomplished tan. In between, competition participants went for a dive at the famous "Satil" wreck all together for an "Epson Red Sea" underwater theme shot.
The winning ceremony was about to start, when a rock band got up on stage and presented a very lively performance, featuring some of the most popular rock songs ever. I know that usually, classic music is played by a quiet, calm and representative jazz band prior such ceremonies, but apparently this year, the Epson Red Sea production decided that the peak of the evening shouldn’t start only when getting to speak about cash. Instead, they have arranged it all to ensure that the whole evening is a one big peak! So as if the rock band wasn’t enough in order to get people started, Alberto Murro Pelliconni, one of Epson Red Sea’s most popular and beloved judges and a character by all means, was called up on stage as well and performed a rock song in such a vivacious way that none of the guests could dare stay indifferent…And then began the ceremony, which was full of surprises and innovative ideas. In general, I would like to state that there is no doubt that the level of images submitted to the competition this year was higher than ever. If one would have listened only to the soundtrack of the audience during the winning ceremony, the amount of “wows” would have certainly supported my statement. If there was ever a reason to get a copy of the Epson Red Sea competition album, it is definitely worthwhile to put your hands on one this year (and no, unfortunately, I do not get any shares…).
One of the first categories announced was the “Children of Epson Red Sea”, a new category that was created this year for the first time. The category was open for children at the age of 9-14, who submitted images taken only with snorkeling equipment and with disposable or compact digital cameras. The judges of this category, by the way, were children themselves, guided through the judging process by Razi Livnat and Boaz Samorai. The results, displayed on the big screen, were absolutely stunning! In fact, they were so amazingly impressive, that when the 9 years old winner, Ido Farkel from Israel, came up on stage to collect his prize, I calculated the number of years I still have in this business before this guy becomes a pro and berries me somewhere there behind…
Then we got to the the Amateurs’ category, which turned out as a huge surprise as well. Roni Soffer, head of the judges, asked to direct a few words before announcing the prizes. He revealed that images submitted to the Amateur’s category this year were actually more professional than amateur and that he’s pretty sure that if some of them would have been submitted to the pro’s category, they might have won a prize as well. He then introduced a short presentation of images submitted to this category, which well convinced everyone that the Amateur’s category looks nothing like it did when it was first created, just three years ago. Now, if this surprises you, it means you have (accidently of course) skipped my 4th day’s report, in which I dedicate a whole paragraph to this issue of professionals becoming amateurs (shouldn’t it be the whole way around??). Eventually, the three winners were announced and got up on stage with a satisfied facial expression that I could only interpret as “Look out Pro’s! Here I come!”Then came the Images of the World category, which consisted of a few sub-categories, accompanied by some very attractive prizes. I know I’m starting to sound a little repetitive, but images in this category were so breathtaking, that you must take a break from reading the report and Click Here to witness the source of my enthusiasm. Watching those images displayed on the big screen, one could easily figure out why the judges were having such a hard time to make decisions this year.
The Eilat Shoot-Out category results were very interesting and diverse. First, one of the categories, called “Eilat Behind the Scenes”, in which photographers were supposed to submit a series of 10 top land images featuring the happening in Eilat and during the competition, was canceled by the judges. The reason, as explained by the head of the judges, Roni Soffer, was that images submitted to this category were simply not good enough in order to be awarded with a prize. This is probably due to the fact that participants in this category did not invest the time and attention required in order to take images that are artistically worth a $2,000. The good news is that the prize was not canceled, but instead, added to the prize of this category next year, which means that on the Epson Red Sea 2010, a prize of $4,000 will be granted to the winner of this category! This sure makes it worthwhile to arrive to Eilat especially to participate in this category next year, even if you are not an underwater photographer and this is the only category you will be participating in. Just make sure that your photographs are planned ahead and carefully carried out and not taken spontaneously on your way from the beach to the shower!
When we got to the “Fish of the Year” category, I was overwhelmed by the variety and diversity of images submitted to this category by 9 photographers that were basically shooting images of the same fish, the Red Grouper (hereinafter “Fish of the Year”). Since photographers were representing different countries from all over the world, they had to do their very best in order to cope with a mission that consisted of such a national aspect. So many special techniques were made use of by the nominees when preparing the portfolio of the Red Grouper that suddenly it looked to me like a naturally born model. Eventually, Pedro Carrillo from Spain won the first prize and the Red Grouper, well, won a priceless amount of exposure, which might justify the countless number of flashes it had to tolerate that week…
Arturo Telle from Spain was the lucky and extremely talented photographer who won the biggest prize of the Epson Red Sea 2009 Competition, a $10,000 check and a three weeks diving vacation for two in Papua New Guinea, including airfare, for the Best 5 Images category. A few days earlier, when all competition participants have gathered together in order to receive a brief from the judges, Roni Sofer, head of the judges, explained that photographers participating in the competition should find a way to create images that do not just properly document the underwater scenery and living creatures, but should also feature a state of art. Images should be CREATED and not simply CAPTURED, as he directed. I think that Arturo’s extraordinary success doesn’t only have to do with the fact that his images were sharp, vivid and featuring appealing subjects. I think that he astonishingly managed to adapt a creative approach in his work, which distinguishes his images from any others. In times like today, when it seems like everything has already been captured underwater and unless you stick your lens inside the kidneys of an alligator, you have no chance to stick out, I think Arturo found a way to prove us otherwise. Obviously this was a great contribution to his bank account, but perhaps to the underwater photography discipline as well…
As for me, I got to win the “Humoristic Image” category, which made me extremely happy and proud of course, but I can hardly say that this is my strongest memory or experience this week. As cheesy as it may sound, the people I’ve met, the adventures we have gone through together and the general festive atmosphere were worth it all to begin with. Oh, and the free beer at the Happy Hours of course!
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