Advice from Alexander Vinogradov: how to win prestigious photo contests and is photo equipment so important?

Alexander Vinogradov – professional portrait photographer, SWPA 2017 open competition winner with his work “Matilda”. He has also taken part and won in competitions such as

SIPA, IPA, Px3, 35photo and Best of America Winner. In this interview he explains the specifics of the Sony World Photography Award, offers advice and tips for future entrants.

&copy Alexander Vinogradov. “Dasha.”.

International Photo Contests. What do they offer financially, recognition, experience? Why it’s important to try yourself?

Photo contest is always an excellent, and often free, opportunity to have your photo works judged by industry professionals. So when I felt some confidence in myself, I decided to try my hand at competitions. It was a local Best of America contest and two of my works made it to the finals and got into the exposition. Of course, this was very inspiring for further “feats.

Photographers are creative people, and many are very sensitive and unsure of themselves and their abilities, so they are afraid to participate in competitions, believing that they have not yet achieved enough and do not deserve attention and recognition. I know many excellent photographers who shoot behind the scenes and hardly ever show their works to the public – and this is a big mistake. It is definitely worth trying your hand and making a name for yourself.

Any judging is very subjective and it is very possible that your work will resonate with the jury and you will be awarded. You can win financially too, with a great cash prize. For example, the HIPA contest has a prize pool of nearly $450,000, and the first place prize can be as much as $24,000. Three of our American photographers have already won prizes, while I have only made it to the finals twice.

&copy Alexander Vinogradov. “Sophia.”.

Your personal experience with the Sony World Photography Award – how long had you been involved in photography before, why did you decide to try it, what did it bring you.

I have a long and interesting history with the Sony World Photography Awards. I’ve been shooting with a Sony camera for about 10 years, and I’m a member of the SonyClub online forum. In 2011 I was lucky enough to be at the Sony World Photography Award ceremony in London, as a blogger to cover the event in my social media and forum. I’ve seen the tears of happiness on winners’ faces, disappointment and sadness of those who made it to the finals but didn’t win. I sincerely felt for everyone who was sitting in the hall and hoped that he would be called on stage as a winner. And in 2017, I stood on that stage myself in a tuxedo and gave a speech of thanks! My picture was chosen out of 110 000 entries as the best one. I applied 3 days in advance, when I received a mention of the deadline in the mail and did not have much hope of winning, but my luck did not leave me.

In addition to the cash prize of $ 5,000 I won the contest for amateurs, the prize in the professional category is $ 25,000 , I received two sets of Sony equipment, payment for the flight and room for two in London. And, of course, this meant some recognition, because there were covers of major photo magazines and publications in media giants like The Times, The Guardian, RIA Novosti, Metro and others. But perhaps the most important award for me was the confidence.

It is a big misconception that only Sony camcorders can be accepted for SWPA. You can submit your entry for free, taken with any brand of camera, even a smartphone. My winning shot with Sony was the first in the history of the contest – usually other photo systems win.

&copy Alexander Vinogradov. “Snezhanna”.

How does the photo selection – what does the jury usually evaluate at what stage: the skill of composition, image quality, color? Who usually wins?

Jury selection is always very subjective. Different contests have very different jury and their taste is usually specific. Here’s some advice before you apply:

– Be sure to check out the winning photos from previous years. That way you will know what the judges usually like.

– Choose exotics. It’s hard to surprise a jury that’s sophisticated and spoiled by good content, so pick scenes and sequences they’re unlikely to have seen before. For example, submitting a portrait of a red-haired girl in an Irish photography contest is almost pointless. Meanwhile, an interesting snowy landscape in an Arab contest is more appropriate.

– Avoid unnecessary retouching. In most competitions, only small manipulations of the original photo are acceptable. And some of them even prohibit it. Study the rules carefully and be prepared to submit RAW’s as proof of authorship.

How do you know if this photo is your best creation??

Choosing the best photo for the contest is very difficult. You can be guided by your own intuition and taste or by likes and comments on social networks.

I usually choose a couple of photos for my taste and a couple based on feedback on social networks, and also focus on the winning works of previous years to see what the jury likes.

&copy Alexander Vinogradov. “Alla.”.

Contests are a competition of technique or skill?

Of course, the craftsmanship. Equipment is just a tool and very secondary. Unfortunately, even now, many people think that by changing techniques, the work will change dramatically, but it is not so.

Nevertheless, the content submitted to competitions must be of high quality in technical terms. A slip of focus or too much digital noise in the picture can spoil everything.

What you wanted to be told at the beginning of your creative journey?

Don’t listen to anyone and go your own way. Develop your own style and try not to repeat yourself. Listen to quality music, contemplate quality visual content, go to exhibitions, get inspired. All this accumulates visual experience, which will later be reflected in your works. Invest in training, not in equipment. Shoot more for the soul, not for money, take care of the creative person in you.

More of Alexander Vinogradov’s work can be seen on his pages:

his own site

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