Record entires for Olympus Auckland Photo Day

A wintry West Auckland beach and a beaming child’s smile have proved a winning combination in the annual Olympus Auckland Photo Day.

The shot ‘Te Henga’ by Malcolm McNeill of Waitakere was judged the best image out of a record 1100 entries.

Announcing the winner today, the Judges praised ‘Te Henga’ for being a cleverly composed portrait that was both a natural and positive image filled with genuine affection. The judges noted that what seems the simplest image is often the hardest to achieve.

The annual OLYMPUS Auckland Photo Day competition was held on June 6th and challenged photographers to capture their city in a single photo with the only rule being the photo had to be taken on that day.

The competition is a highlight of the Auckland Festival of Photography underway at the moment and organiser Julia Durkin says she’s absolutely delighted not only with 30% increase in entries but also with the standard and quality of the photos. “It really shows that Aucklanders have embraced this opportunity to capture a day in the life of their city” she says.

The winning entry receives an Olympus E-520 DSLR and the top 30 entries will have their photos turned into customized postage stamps by NZ Post.

Second prize went to Steve Lawton of Mangere Bridge with ‘Wave Goodbye to Daddy’ with third prize going to Breen Porter of Takapuna for ‘Train Waiting’.

The competition was judged by Ron Brownson, Senior Curator, Auckland Art Gallery, Kellie Blizard, Chief Photographer, The Aucklander and Chris Traill, MNZIPP.

The top 30 winning shots can be seen on the Festival web site from 17th June 5pm - www.photographyfestival.org.nz