Page 64 - Australian Photography Feb 2022

WINNER
JUNIOR
SUPERBOY
MATTHEW BARRETT
@mb.urbn
17-year-old Matthew Barrett is originally from Scotland, and having moved to Australia in 2015 has focussed on developing his photo- graphic knowledge and skills.
“I love the ability that photography gives me to document my experiences and adven- tures from around NSW and Australia,” he said. “My favourite genres are astrophotogra- phy, automobile, sports and adventure, and I gain great satisfaction from producing photo- graphs that are visually crisp and clean with great composition.”
His junior category winning image Super- boy was taken at a popular jump rock in Syd- ney that overlooks the Sydney CBD skyline.
“This was one of the first spots I had ex- plored since coming out of lockdown,” he ex- plained. “I had planned on getting photos of my friend jumping off the rock with the city skyline in the background, but at the top of the rock
it was very crowded and there weren’t many compositions that worked. Instead, I decided to climb down the rocks to the water’s edge, to see if another composition would work.
I got my friend to do a variation of jumps into the water. I loved this image specifically because the composition is perfect - it show- cases the surrounding environment without any other people in the frame, and the diving pose symbolises what that day was to me - spontaneous and a dive back into freedom.
WHAT THE JUDGES SAID ANTHONY MCKEE: There were a lot of good photographs in the Junior compe- tition, but this capture of a boy leaping like Superman off a bluff in Sydney was one of the judging team’s favourites. Sev- eral things are working for this image, in- cluding the well-controlled exposure; the
photographer is shooting into the sun and yet we still get subtle hints of city in the distance, and there are no hints of flare. The design also works well, with the warm tones of the rocks balanced nicely against the light blue of the sky and sea. What we love most about this image though is the boy captured perfectly, mid-flight, as if he was just about to fly off towards the city. The moment is frozen, and we can see ev- ery detail of him perfectly, and most peo- ple looking at this image would probably just love to be in that moment themselves - feeling free. Well done, Matthew; it’s an awesome image.
PRIZE: $500 cash; an MSI pack (in- cludes MSI Urban Outdoor Backpack and hoodie) valued at $500; Nokia X20 smartphone valued at $599.
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