Page 70 - Australian Photography Dec 2020

BOOK IT IN
Australia’s only national amateur photobook competition, The APS Photobook of the Year, attracted a record 37 entries from 13 camera clubs across Australia. Now in its fifth year and sponsored by Momento Pro, the award shows enthusiasm for the printed form is alive and well.
LIKED BY BRIAN ROPE OF CANBERRA PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY AND CANBERRA PHOTOCONNECT
Liked presented an engaging series of abstract black and white images and it made us laugh. The image selection was unique and contemporary, as only photos that received a ‘like’ from a pho- tography peer were chosen. Including the social post text and comments, in the Facebook font, also added to the context and humour. It’s a great cre- ative collaboration.
AMSTERDAM RUSH HOUR BY ANNE PAPPALARDO OF QUEENSLAND CAMERA GROUP
Amsterdam Rush Hour is a well edited and beautifully sequenced series of pho- tographs of the city’s bike riders. The technically excellent images have been strategically paired and placed on the pages to play on and enhance the con- cept of motion, and the choice of a matte white stock and black end pages is a per- fect match for the monotone imagery.
STORYTELLING WINNERS
I’M NOT ME ANYMORE BY LOU GILBERT
OF BRISBANE CAMERA GROUP
Despite its intimate size, this book packs a powerful emotional punch. The portraits of an elderly woman woven in with her comments on moving into a nursing home are confronting. The grey cover, the addition of deliber- ately blurred images and their random placement on the page all tragically reflect the status of her Alzheimer’s affected mind.
IF I HAD MY LIFE OVER I’D PICK MORE DAISIES BY HELEN MCFADDEN OF CANBERRA PHOTOCONNECT
Helen has brought together all her creative skills in this beautifully edited and formatted photo book. In addition to the excellent photography and fine art photo editing, she enhanced the pho- tographs with botanical illustrations, painting and poetry, making full use of the book format to create her memoir in flowers from 30 years in floral art.
THE MUSIC OF THE SPHERES BY PAUL BALFE OF REDLANDS CAMERA CLUB
Not only are the photographs of moving light sources skillful and fascinating, but the text, font and layout of the book are perfectly aligned with its purpose. The design is clean and consistent, the use of headings and captions makes it feel like a scientific document, while the organic motif used throughout the pages reflects the concept of movement, too. ❂
ABOVE: Judge Warren Vievers carefully reviews some of the entries in the 2020 APS Photobook of the Year competition.
BELOW: I’m Not Me Anymore by Lou Gilbert.
OPPOSITE: Hokkaido Winter 2020 by Lesley Bretherton.
APS FOCUS
After five hours of review, six winners across the two categories of portfo- lio and storytelling were awarded based on excellence and fitness for purpose in photography, sequencing of images, design, layout and typography.
The six winners across the two catego- ries, which you can read about below, share prizes of $500 cash from the APS Print Group and $1400 in photo book vouchers from Momento Pro.
You can see more images of the winning books at aps.com.au.
PORTFOLIO WINNERS
HOKKAIDO WINTER 2020 BY LESLEY BRETHERTON OF MELBOURNE CAMERA CLUB This book was the unanimous winner due to its immaculate landscape photo- graphs that were poetically paired with a haiku. The font style and colour blend beautifully with the tone of the photog- raphy, while the placement of a location index at the back of the book is in keeping with the its minimalist nature. Hokkaido Winter 2020 is a visual meditation.
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