Last Updated on 11/14/2024 by Chris Gampat
Vibrant reds, lively greens, calm blues, sparkly yellows, warm oranges — once upon a time, we had color imagery, and all was good and proper. Then we came upon an era of darkness and despondency, emo filters, gritty movies, and grittier remakes —channeling the energy of the Grey Men from Momo— and everything seemed to turn to hopelessness and indifference. These days, more than ever, we need color to come back into our lives — and the good people at All About Photo took the right step at the right time with their last photography contest; Colors. Today, we’re going to take a close look at the three winners of said competition, trying to shine a bit of a light on these already absolutely brilliant images.
The lead image is courtesy of William Ropp/All About Photo. All images are used with permission by AAP.
For this 43rd edition, as usual, AAP Magazine received entries from all over the world. Following the judging process, the publication chose 25 images from 15 different countries. These images will be featured on their print magazine and showcase on their website; apart from that, the top three winners will be awarded $1000 for their stunning work.
Let’s dive in and take a look at the top three and their pictures, shall we?
Alfa Beer
Author: Fabien Dendiével, France.
Series: United Colors.
This picture, as the author himself says, will make you think of William Eggleston’s iconic cocktail photo. I think the picture benefits greatly from having the right brand of beer; that green can complements perfectly the darker green on the fabrics behind it.
On my return from a trip to Athens, I captured this photo. I’d bought a few beers at the airport to toast my week in Greece. As I opened one mid-flight, the light became beautifully soft, perfectly illuminating the beer I’d set on the tray. With one shot left on my Pentax 67, I seized the moment.
Fabien dendiével
Fabien Dendiével is an international photographer based on Montpellier, France; his website lacks a bio, but you can also follow him on Instagram for more well-composed goodness.
Gypsy Woman
Author: Pietro Si Giambattista
Project: Romani People
While the colors in this picture are beautiful, I think the aspect that jumps at me is the composition. Everything a flattish blue but for a tiny clock on the far left and a mirror reflecting a woman who is out of the way of the camera.
This project has been carried out since 1999, both in the old camps– where people lived in extreme conditions, with no water and no electricity – and in the new camps– which are legally authorised, and where different ethnic and religious groups cohabit together. We are living in a moment of disconcerting approval of hateful feelings which result in stigmatizations, hostile statements, incitement to discrimination of the other, within a climate which is sadly fostered by some of the highest institutional offices.
Pietro Si Giambattista
Pietro Si Giambattista is a documentary photographer based in Italy. You can see more of his project on Romani people on his Instagram account.
Blue
Author: Kaveh Maghsoudi
Series: One color but endless feelings
A woman, back to the camera, half submerged in a tiled pool barely illuminated by a direct flash of light — the composition and the natural filter offered by the water makes this a stunning picture.
Blue is a deep color with high ambiguity like the depths of the ocean. The ambiguity that is mixed with an unknown and invisible person in this blue and gives the audience a dumb and unfamiliar feeling and at the same time weightlessness and timelessness.
Kaveh Maghsoudi
Kaveh Maghsoudi is a Persian photographer based in Tehran, blending art, cinema and different photography categories to just find his path through. You can check his website and his Instagram account for more of his work.
The Merit Gallery Winners
Among these pieces selected by AAP we can find works by photographers such as Olena Zubach (Ukraine), Kaat Stieber (The Netherlands), Tom Flathers (United Kingdom), Gabriel Wong (Canada), Anna Biret (France/Poland), Verônica Alkmim França (Brazil/Sweden), Thierry Camus (France), Vivian Wan (USA), Shawna Gibbs (USA), Abhishek Basak (India), Isabel Mombaerts (Belgium), Chris Panas (Poland), William Ropp (France), Marika Poquet (France), Nicola Balastrazzi (Italy), Emmanuel Monzón (France/USA), Elias Achy (Lebanon), Edwin Carungay (USA), Jaroslav Mares (Czechoslovakia), Thibault Gerbaldi (France/USA), Barry Guthertz (USA) and Dennis Church (USA)
Personally, my favorite pieces among these are the following by Kaat Stieber and William Ropp. The use of color —the deep orange tones of Kaat’s and the pastels of William’s— in these had got me mesmerized and amazed for a long time.
As for the rest, make sure you click on them to take a proper look and judge for yourselves!
