A KEEN photographer has achieved his dream of being recognised and published by a prestigious competition.
Tony Cowburn, from Chandler's Ford, received a ‘Highly Commended’ award in the Landscape Photographer of the Year competition fulfilling a long-term ambition.
The member of Winchester Photographic Society earned the award in the ‘Your View’ category and will have his work published alongside other top entries in a full colour book and annual exhibition touring railway stations across the UK.
The showcase, now in its 15th year, was developed by one of the country’s leading landscape photographers, Charlie Waite, to inspire engagement with the British landscape through photography.
Mr Cowburn, 70, said: “It’s a very prestigious competition and has always been an ambition of mine so I’m very happy. To have my work published by Landscape Photographer of the Year competition feels really something.”
Tony’s winning photo captures a glass domed entrance building at the southern end of the Greenwich ‘foot tunnel’. The building opened in 1902 to enable workers living south of the Thames to walk to work in the docks and shipyards in the Isle of Dogs.
The photographer said: “I wanted to show the stark contrast between the old Edwardian building and the modern glass and concrete skyscrapers at Canary Wharf in the distance. Black and white ‘urban photography’ is a bit of a change from my usual Dorset coastal landscape work, but I have really enjoyed producing striking images of a very different type of landscape.
“It was a very grey November day and so the colours didn’t look spectacular. I was very pleased with the final result because it looked as I had wanted, and I’d learned new editing techniques to make the photo look even more dramatic.”
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An exhibition of all the winning and commended entries will premiere on October 31 at Paddington Station. In partnership with Network Rail, the exhibition will travel up and down the United Kingdom, stopping at further stations including Manchester, Piccadilly, Glasgow Central and London. The Chandler’s Ford photographer is hoping to get a photo of his photo on display.
The exhibition tour aims to allow tens of thousands of visitors and commuters to discover the wonder and joys of the British landscape and be inspired by the very best of landscape photography.
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Awards founder, Charlie Waite, said: “I’m delighted to share the winners of the 15th Landscape Photographer of the Year, sponsored by MPB. The still image does not move, nor speak, yet it has an immense ability to communicate in a multitude of different ways. The photographer uses the camera as the most wonderful conduit to engage with what lies in front of them, and the images in this year’s award showcase the wonder, diversity and beauty of our United Kingdom.”
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