The Bord Gáis Energy Schools' Photography Competition in association with 'The Irish Times' has proven just how many good photographers are out there, writes JOHN HOLDEN.
PHOTOGRAPHY IS one of those professions everyone thinks they could do. What’s to know? Point your camera at the subject and click. Well, taking photos is easy, but taking good photos requires an artistic eye (or two) and a steady hand. Digital cameras have indeed made it easier for the novice to get it right, but knowing how best to capture a moment in time is trickier than you think.
The Bord Gáis Capture the Power competition challenged students, from as young as five up to 19 years old, to take a photo which encapsulates power in one of three themes: the environment, the world around you and sport. There were four categories at primary and secondary level and, by all accounts, the standard was jaw-droppingly high.
With the many different projects, competitions and activities being promoted in Irish schools every year, new ones don’t tend to gain much attention until they become more well-established and better-known.
However, in its first year, the Capture the Power competition received over 4,000 entries from students in 700 schools across Ireland over a six-week period. That is good going.
“We wanted to do something which allowed students to display the talent that’s out there,” explains Nicky Doran of Bord Gáis. “We figured a photography competition would be, in a sense, the most level playing field. Nearly everybody can physically take a photograph, so it doesn’t put anyone at an advantage in the way a writing or drawing competition might.
“As an energy provider, we felt a competition which highlighted energy in all its contexts would make sense,” he adds. “We wanted to get kids interacting with energy, not in the raw sense of the word – gas, oil or electricity – more so the nature of energy in life.”
The overall winner of the competition was sixth-year student James Fleming, from Skerries Community College in north Dublin, for his entry in the sports category, “High in the Sky”. Leon Farrell, an independent judge from Photocall Ireland, found all three themes in the winning shot. “James managed to capture the essence of the whole competition in one frame – the environment, the air, the sky, clouds, the power of the bike and sport. To capture all that in one photograph was no mean feat. Plus his attention to technical details like sharpness and exposures also impressed.”
The 17-year-old took the winning picture earlier this year at a motorcross event in Dundalk.
“I go to most of the events in Ireland and take loads of pictures,” he says. “Sometimes I sell them, so I decided maybe they were good enough to enter into the Bord Gáis competition. I’ve always been into motorcross and I’d love to ride a bike myself, but I can’t afford one yet so I just take pictures of them instead.”
JAMES GOT HIS first camera only last year. “It’s a digital single lens reflex camera,” he says. “I got it as a present from my parents. I had shown some skills in photography over the years so I asked could I get one. I love photography. I like shooting all sorts of things – scenery and landscapes – but particularly sport. I take a lot of photos at Gaelic and soccer matches also, but it’s difficult to capture a good shot in them because there’s a lot of different things going on at once. With motorcross you can focus in on one rider and there are plenty of jumps and falls, which always make for good pictures.”
James is now considering studying photography at DIT Aungier Street after his Leaving Cert. He would have continued to take photographs had he not won the competition. Still, it’s always nice to be acknowledged. “It’s great to be getting the recognition for it,” he says. “When people say that they like my photos it encourages me to keep taking them.”
Not only does he get recognition, but he also gets a new Canon EOS 450D Digital SLR Camera, a Nintendo Wii and the chance to be a VIP photographer at a prestigious event for a day.
JAMES WAS THE overall winner, but there were several other winners in the five-nine, 10-13, 12-15 and 16-19 year old categories. All will win cameras, iPods or Nintendo Wiis, and,according to Leon Farrell, deservedly so.
“I was very surprised at how high the standard was,” he says. “Students really captured the themes excellently. There was a great selection of images illustrating power in the environment, sport and the world around us. We had pictures showing farming scenes, people photographing their pets, people walking on the beach with windsurfers in the background and mountains all around them. There are a lot of very good photographers out there.”
Eye witness: Aiming for good, honest snapshots
"It’s essential that all photographers, in their professionalism, are honest witnesses,” said award-winning former Irish Times photographer Tom Lawlor in a recent radio interview. Today’s high-tech digital world means its possible to manipulate and change images in order to convey a fallacy. In 2004, former Daily Mirror editor Piers Morgan paid dearly for publishing images of British soldiers allegedly torturing Iraqi prisoners. The pics turned out to be fakes and Morgan was sacked. In the rush to find a good story, he overlooked the importance of checking the pictures’ validity.
There’s always going to be a certain amount of manipulation and airbrushing in the advertising and fashion world. You’ll find it in glossy magazines, and sometimes in tabloid newspapers, but do you also find it in broadsheets? Not so, according to Lawlor, as any photographer who takes himself seriously will be dedicated to showing the world as it really is. This is more true now than it has ever been. Most people have a camera on their phone which means there are amateur photographers in almost every situation.
Certain rules apply, though, no matter what type of camera you have or what level your skills are at. Irish Times photographer Bryan O’Brien gives his advice on taking good snaps: “When you’re starting out it’s a good idea to photograph subjects that you’re familiar with, like family members and friends, people you’re comfortable with. Once you are happy doing that, it is easier to go onto strangers – people at concerts, things like that.
“Get comfortable with your camera. Get to know your camera and read the manual. Try to avoid flash photography initially, because it can be very unflattering and it’s hard to do a good photo well with flash. Use available light photography. Aim to master that first. Plus, softer light is generally more flattering. In terms of framing, never position your subject in the dead centre of the frame. Put them a little to the left or the right. It makes for a nicer compositional arrangement.
“Try to use normal lenses. Don’t get caught up on equipment. Get used to using the normal 50mm lens. People seem to think the more lenses you have the better your photography will be, but it’s not true. The 50mm lens is as close to the human perspective as you’ll get. Wide lenses distort and long lenses compress – both will have a significant impact on the final photo.
“A lot of people get into photography just for the stuff. In my experience, keep it simple.”
