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Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Sunset Print Award Grand Prize Winner: Permanent Bond

Permanent Bond by Tammy Bevins

The judging panel for the first annual National Sunset Print Award described the First Place Grand Prize winner – Permanent Bond by Tammy Bevins – as “flawless,” “masterful” and “fully resolved.” The image depicts the bond her twin sons have had since before they were born.

In fact, there was little debate about the print, other than how perfect each element of the image – from composition to lighting – was absolutely spot-on.

Permanent Bond was one of 29 prints judged at LexJet headquarters in Sarasota, Fla., on Thursday, Nov. 13. All of the entries in the National Sunset Print Award competition won a Sunset Print Award at state and regional competitions across the U.S. in 2014.

Permanent Bond won the Sunset Print Award at the Professional Photographers of South Carolina (PPSC) competition, and was thus automatically eligible for the national competition.

Sunset Print Award
One of Tammy Bevin’s twins prepares to get into the water tank for the Sunset Print Award-winner, Permanent Bond.

“It took four minutes to photograph something, but it took me four years to come up with the idea,” says Bevins. “For several years I’ve been trying to come up with a concept to show the bond my twins have with each other and what it means to be a twin. It’s one of the most amazing experiences to have twins that look so much alike and have been best friends. Over the years I didn’t come up with something I was inspired to do until I came up with Permanent Bond. I wanted to position them like they were in the womb together, and I used rope to signify the umbilical cord.”

The shoot actually took more than four minutes as Bevins built a water tank in the back yard filled with a few inches of water and dry ice to create the fog effect. What you see is basically what Bevins captured; there was very little Photoshop work done to the image.

Bevins captured the image with a Canon 5D Mark II with a 24-70mm lens at 1/200, f/4.6, and 160 ISO. Master printer Jonathan Penney, Center Moriches, N.Y., printed the image on fine art paper.

Sunset Print Awards
The judges at the first annual National Sunset Print Awards evaluate Permanent Bond by Tammy Bevins. Photo by Billy Elkins.

“I used available light and a 2×3 soft box. I had the soft box on pretty low and wanted the light skimming across them and coming up from the top a bit,” explains Bevins.

Bevins runs Nuvo Images in Charleston, S.C., with her daughter and son-in-law, both of whom are award-winning photographers as well. Bevins has nine children – six girls and three boys – ranging in age from 13 to 29. The twins are the third and fourth out of the nine.

“I grew up in West Virginia, and everyone in my family were coal miners. I moved to South Carolina after I got married and was in the medical field. We started having children and I stayed home with the kids, which gave me some time to explore my creative side,” says Bevins. “About 13 years ago I started taking art classes in oil painting at the local museum and I absolutely loved it. My husband suggested I take photography classes, and it really exploded for me and fit my lifestyle. My first year in business was 2004 and I immediately joined PPA and PPSC, and shortly thereafter got interested in print competitions.”

The National Sunset Print Award judging panel - from left to right, Carmen Schettino, Julie Hughes, Jessica Vogel, Tom Carabasi and Rich Newell - with their choice for First Place, Permanent Bond by Tammy Bevins. Congratulations, Tammy!
The National Sunset Print Award judging panel – from left to right, Carmen Schettino, Julie Hughes, Jessica Vogel, Tom Carabasi and Rich Newell – with their choice for First Place, Permanent Bond by Tammy Bevins. Congratulations, Tammy!

Bevins’ accomplishment at the National Sunset Print Awards is made all the more remarkable by the quality and variety of the images entered in the competition, from fine art photography to portraits and landscapes.

Julia Kelleher of Jewel Images in Bend, Ore., won second place for He Has Arrived. Click here to read the story behind Kelleher’s award-winning print that scored a 100 at the PPA Western District print competition.

Pete Wright won third for his retro image, Temptress, which won a Sunset Print Award at the PPA Southeast District competition. Click here to read the story behind this stunning image.

Congratulations to all the 2014 Sunset Print Award winners who made it to the National competition! Go to http://www.sunsetprint.com/previous-winners/ to see all the winners from 2014 and earlier years, and the stories behind the photography. While you’re there, look around to find out more about the 2015 competition and which competitions you can enter for a shot at a Sunset Print Award.

And, special thanks to our judges this year, who not only did a thorough and fair job, but gave everyone at LexJet a valuable education in what makes a print stand out at competition. This year’s judges were: Tom Carabasi of Ringling College of Art + Design; Julie Hughes, Abbey of London, Jensen Beach, Fla.; Rich Newell, Professional Photographers of America; Carmen Schettino, Carmen Schettino Photography, Sarasota; Jessica Vogel, Jessica Vogel Photography, Shelbyville, Ky.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in News & Trends
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National Sunset Print Award Judging Starts Today at LexJet HQ

Sunset Print Award

Today is the big day: 29 photographers and their award-winning prints compete for the ultimate prize, the first National Sunset Print Award being held at LexJet headquarters in Sarasota, Fla.

A five-person judging panel will stroll through the gallery of images that won Sunset Print Awards at a variety of photo competitions across the country. Those winners were then eligible for the National Sunset Print Award with the First-, Second- and Third-Place winners earning valuable prizes.

This year’s judges include:

The judges’ work will be cut out for them as the 29 Sunset Print Award winners run the gamut from landscapes and portraits to fine art and abstract work.

To view all of the 2014 Sunset Print Award winners currently on display for judging today, go to www.sunsetprint.com/previous-winners/. You will also see Sunset Print Award winners from previous years, so it’s a diverse gallery of talent.

To find out the 2015 competitions where the Sunset Print Award is being presented, go to www.sunsetprint.com/sunset-print-award/. This page is continually being updated as organizations around the country finalize their conferences, conventions and competitions, so check back regularly for the latest.

Also, check back here for the final judging results from the first National Sunset Print Award.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in News & Trends
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Get Your Photos Ready for the International Photographic Competition

 

Images declared merit-worthy at the IPC then get a chance to earn a spot in the Loan Collection book. The 2013 cover features the work of Sunset Print Award winner Ann Naugher, M. Photog., CP.
Images declared merit-worthy at the IPC then get a chance to earn a spot in the Loan Collection book. The 2013 cover features the work of Sunset Print Award winner Ann Naugher, M. Photog., CP.

Professional Photographers of America (PPA) announced that it will begin accepting entries for the International Photographic Competition (IPC) on May 26. Entries for the annual competition will be due by July 10, though you get a break on the entry fee if you enter by June 26.

The judging will take place at Gwinnett Technical College in Lawrenceville, Ga., August 4-7. Judging is open to the public and there is no RSVP or no cost to attend. Photographers are encouraged to attend since the judging is an excellent learning opportunity so you can find out how to maximize your chances of understanding and processing successfully the criteria evaluated during the competition.

At IPC photographers may submit individual prints or digital images, and/or physical or digital photo albums. The judging panels are made up of experienced and qualified experts who undergo a rigorous and methodical training. IPC offers participants the possibility to enter their work in up to four image categories: Portrait, Illustrative, Event Album and Non-Event Album.

Submissions are judged against PPA’s industry-wide recognized standard of excellence using the 12 Elements of a Merit Image. The 12 elements are: Impact, Technical Excellence, Creativity, Style, Composition, Presentation, Color Balance, Center of Interest, Lighting, Subject Matter Technique and Story Telling.

Images that score high in all 12 elements are declared merit-worthy and will move on to a second round of judging, for a chance to earn a place in the PPA Loan Collection. These images are published in the Loan Collection book published by Marathon Press and are also exhibited in print and on screen at Imaging USA, PPA’s annual photography convention and expo, which will be held Feb. 1-3, 2015, in Nashville.

The cost to enter is $95 for PPA members who register before midnight on June 26, and $160 for non-members. For PPA members who register through midnight on July 10, it’s $130 and $220 for non-members. No registrations will be accepted after July 10. For rules and complete details go to ppa.com/ipc.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in News & Trends
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Plan for PPA: Pro Photo Tour Starts in August

Printing marketing pieces with wide format inkjet printers in-houseProfessional Photographers of America (PPA) has just scheduled a late-summer tour for professional photographers geared toward improving the digital workflow, finding a competitive niche, running a better business, managing post-capture for the highest profitability, and more.

The eight-city tour of daylong workshops starts in Atlanta on August 15 with other events planned for Houston, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Orlando, Kansas City, San Francisco and Raleigh. Each of these PPA Tour events is focused on helping photographers make more money, while finding new ways to stand out in a highly competitive industry.

“The market for educational products targeted to photographers has exploded in the last couple of years with all kinds of inspirational and artistic programming. However, there are few options for learning how to run a sound business from A to Z,” explains Dawn Robb, PPA’s director of education. “The PPA Tour is set up to walk photographers through a day in the life of a successful photography studio, from finding and targeting the right customers, to taking a great photo and managing the post-capture process for highest profitability. We’ll bring it all together at the end of the day with the thing all photographers want most: strategies to sell more products.”

The PPA Tour is designed to help photographers who are just getting into the business and those who could use the classes as a business booster. Workshops will be taught by industry leaders, and the speakers will vary from city to city. Instructors include Bry Cox, Tony Corbell, Kay Eskridge, Lori Nordstrom and others. “We’re highlighting photographers who have created profitable business models and are ready to lend their expertise to others,” adds Robb.

Robb also points out that the PPA Tour 2011 is a great opportunity for photographers to network and learn from each other. “Others have gone through the same challenges you are going through, and now’s your chance to capitalize on their solutions.”

Whether attendees choose between a full day of education for $79 (9 a.m. to 10 p.m.) or the evening program on sales and service for $39 (5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.), they will all have access to a mini trade show. At the trade show, they can browse for products and meet with key industry partners.

PPA Tour 2011 Locations and Dates

Atlanta, August 15

Houston, August 22

Philadelphia, September 12

Cincinnati, September 19

Orlando, September 26

Kansas City, October 3

San Francisco, October 10

Raleigh, October 17

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Prints that Win: Andrew Jenkins Portrays Warren Motts

Winning photography competitionsMichael Timmons of The Portrait Gallery in Vasser, Mich., gets around. As noted in a yesterday’s post about Duncan MacNab’s award winning image, Timmons printed Duncan MacNab’s award-winning print on LexJet Sunset Photo eSatin. For Andrew Jenkins’ LexJet Sunset Award and Best Color Portrait winner at the PPA Northeast District competition, Timmons printed The Curator on Sunset Photo eSatin as well.

“The print was incredible. I don’t think there’s anyone in the country printing better images on eSatin than Michael,” says Jenkins.

The Curator himself is Warren Motts, who runs the Motts Military Museum in Groveport, Ohio, which houses the largest privately owned collection of military memorabilia in the United States. Motts is also a past president of the Professional Photographers of America (PPA).

“Warren is an incredible man and I wanted to take a portrait of him in his environment. I took a road trip with my father, spent the day at the museum and created the portrait at the end of the day,” explains Jenkins.  “The focus is on him as the curator with enough elements from the museum to support where he’s at and what he’s doing. I included the folded American flag in the image because it’s something that’s important to Warren.”

Jenkins owns Canfield Jenkins House of Photography in St. Johns, Mich., which is about four hours from the museum. Jenkins focuses on high end custom designed portraiture at his studio, so the award-winning portrait of Warren Motts was a natural fit. Another print of the portrait now hangs proudly at the museum.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in News & Trends
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Coveted Sunset Award to be Presented at Eight Upcoming Photo Competitions

LexJet is proud to honor and promote excellence in professional photography with its Sunset Award for outstanding photography and inkjet print reproduction at eight annual print competitions held by affiliates of the Professional Photographers of America and other regional professional organizations.

Photography competition awardThis year all five PPA Districts will include the Sunset award in their competitions. The Sunset Award winning image category is selected by the presenting organization (see specific categories below), and the winner is selected by the respective print-competition judging panel.

In addition to the beautiful Sunset Award trophy, the winner will receive a $100 gift certificate that can be used to purchase any of the products included in LexJet’s Sunset portfolio of inkjet materials for professional photographic printing and fine art reproduction.

An additional $300 gift certificate will be presented if the winning photographer purchased materials from LexJet in 2010-11 or used LexJet Sunset media to create the award-winning print. The following print competitions held in conjunction with the hosting organization’s annual conference will be awarding the 2011 LexJet Sunset Award…

PPA District Photographic Competitions:

Other regional competitions:

  • Plymouth Center for the Arts, Fine Art of Photography Regional Juried Photography Exhibition: Exhibition is April 1-30 at the Plymouth Center for the Arts, Plymouth, Mass. The Sunset Award will be presented to the winner of the Best Quality Print & Presentation category.
  • PhotoNorthEast: March 26-29, Woodcliff Lake Hilton, Woodcliff Lake, N.J. The Sunset Award will be presented to the winner of the Best Electronic Imaging category.
  • PPA of PA: April 3-5, Days Inn Penn State, State College, Pa. The Sunset Award will be presented to the winner of the Best Quality Print and Presentation category.