Top 5 at Zone V: September 2023 - Zone V Camera Club

Top 5 at Zone 5

Fine Art Bodyscape was the photo contest theme at Zone V Camera Club for the month of September. Invited to judge and critique were high-caliber photographers who pored over 60 entries for this month.

The judges were Wig Tysmans, Denise Weldon and former ZVCC President and well-published and respected photographer Eddie Boy Escudero.

Here are the top 5 winning entries and read the stories behind these images.

#5 “Karada” by Ruben Castor Ranin

ISO 800; f/2.8; 1/20sec

Shot using Canon EOS R5, RF 70-200mm

This photo was taken last August 12,2023; during the bodyscape workshop of Ricky Ladia.

It was my first time to take this kind of photo. The genre of this kind of photography taught me with a better understanding of fine art nude photography. Challenging in a way because I’m not comfortable with lighting, but I hurdled it with the help of co-Zone V members.

I used low light condition on my subject to give emphasize on the figures and shape of the body. For me this is a better way to execute artistry in nude photography.

#4 “Kurba” by Dru Magturo

ISO 800; f/13; 1/60sec

It is a pre-determined pose that I had in my mind during the scheduled activity. With the theme bodyscape, I know the human back and butt can give me the ultimate curves that the human body can give during the shoot. When I saw the finished image after the allowed dodge and burn, I expected that this image will land in the Top 10.

Salamat!

#3 “Die For You” by Joui Sampedro

ISO 6400; f/9; 1/60sec

Nude photography was very new to me, and with all the rules and guidelines we were given during the orientation, I was very hesitant to experiment. At first, I tried to copy everyone who was shooting wide, but once I got the hang of looking at the human body as a work of art, it got easier. With my zoom lens attached and with my concept board in mind, I tried to find every curve, mark, shape, and detail of the body I could find. I made it my goal to shoot with the intent of making the audience appreciate the human body as much as I did.

Up until the (quite literally) very last second, I wasn’t entirely sure which photos to have printed. It was really my friend who saw the beauty and potential in this photo, and so I owe my win to him. This “win” is not only a symbol of my talent and passion but also my determination to achieve greatness. I’ve come a long way from winning 3^rd in our school photo contest, among 9 participants, to placing 3^rd in a professional contest with 60+ other entries.

We have our own interpretations of the art that we see; not everyone who sees my photo will know what I went through in order to capture it. Most of the time, my photos do not have meanings, but instead they have stories. Stories that were captured in time, stories of the moment, stories that you will never see in the photo but in the eyes of the shooter.

#2 “Flora and Female Forms” by Bern Wong

This image is an experiment on how i can create an interesting floral pattern using the interplay of the light & shadow casted on a female figure.

The hard edged shadows blended beautifully with the curves of the human form creating a lotus, a meaningful symbol of purity and rebirth.

#1 “Terra Curva” by Arlene Donaire

ISO 500; f/9; 1/5sec

The image is a “cutout” of a woman’s body, created to simulate “terra curva” or curvature in the earth’s surface.

The original image is a female posed in seated form, with her right leg folded close to the chest and her elbow resting on the kneecap. The lighting setup was positioned on the right side; expertly done by our coach (Ricky Ladia). I “abstracted” or cropped into the highlighted portion only, from the thighs/knees up to the shoulders, and rotated it horizontally, to create the impression of a rolling landscape. In post processing (using Adobe Camera Raw & Photoshop), I ensured that the tonality, contrast, and texture were preserved. Converting to black and white necessitates preserving the light range from bright to dark (highlights and shadows); which are essential in mimicking dimension.

There really isn’t anything profound I can say about the image – for sure it’s a product of imagination but one that took me a while to visualize though because this is not my usual photography genre. I guess I drew strongly from my familiarity with landscape photography composition and design techniques in envisioning the form/shape that I extracted. I was torn between submitting a “full body” image and an “abstraction” but in the end, I decided on the latter as it is a more precise interpretation of what bodyscape photography is about.

Photo of Arlene above, taken by Armi Yam

Because the contest was in print format, it mattered to me that I should submit the best quality print; one that would really translate the editing I made into true black and white tones. I relied on the printer’s expertise – to use cotton rag paper, which helps to bring out the texture of the image.