The Bare Native team are delighted to announce the winners of this years Mersea Island Amateur Photographer of the Year. This competition has been a welcome escape for many through a challenging year. We have been astounded by all the entries; we wish we could have shared every single one of them. We also can’t thank the public enough for getting involved in the voting process.
To kick things off, here is our overall winner:
‘Cudmore Park at Sunrise’ by Robert Johnston
Robert has had a passion for photography over the years, capturing the precious moments of his two daughters growing up. This then lead him onto landscape photography where he can showcase his talent when he finds the many hidden gems across Essex. For ‘Cudmore Park at Sunrise’, Robert used a long exposure of the posts in order to create the smooth look across the water, which he feels gives it the tropical feel. With the sun rising to the left of the shot, he felt it illuminated the sticks, coming together to create our winning photo!
Here is what head judge, Chrissie Westgate had to say: this beautifully composed image of the iconic polders at East Mersea provides us with an instantly recognisable ‘sense of place’ Mersea Island. The angle Robert has chosen is perfect, with the tops of the polders just above the horizon, leading us into the picture. Even the clouds are moving along in the same direction. The seaweed that clings to the polders is pin sharp, enabling us to see every detail. I would be very happy to have this picture on my wall, it is just beautiful.
Chrissie also selected a runner up for the competition. Finding Bob Winnington’s ‘Belle and the Beach Huts’ so delightful – that it just had to have a special mention. Chrissie told us that ‘once again, it provides us with a very real ‘sense of place’ – Mersea Island! Belle sporting her red coat, stands proudly to the fore with the esplanade beach huts in the background. A really charming image that makes me smile, well done Bob and Belle!’
‘Belle and the Beach Huts’ by Bob Winnington
And our category winners are…
Lockdown Memories
‘Goat in Lockdown’ by Alison Howe
Natural Vistas
‘Tranquillity’ by Mark Jarvis
Out on the Water
‘Mersea Harbour at Blue Hour’ by Josh London
Poignant Portraits
‘My Dad’ by Fred Wass
That rounds up the Mersea Island Amateur Photographer Awards 2021. Congratulations to our overall winner and our category winners. With a big thank you to all of our judges who gave up their time to scour through every photo to select their favourites.
Keep your cameras at the ready to be in with a chance of winning next years Awards.
