Joanna Steidle, a photographer living in Long Island, New York, is an expert skilled in drone piloting. She takes an FPV (first-person view) drone instead of a camera out to the sea in his neighborhood. She captures the mysterious and dynamic nature that could appear in National Geographic magazine from the ocean not far away. The moment when a massive humpback whale, reaching a length of 17m, hides its body below the surface, as well as the scene where spinner sharks and schools of eagle rays rush toward their prey, are vividly captured in the photographs. Just by looking at the pictures, one might mistake this place for being only 100km away from New York, the world's largest economic city.
The International Aerial Photographer of the Year Awards announced on the 1st (local time) that American photographer and drone pilot Joanna steidle has secured first place in the aerial photographer category and revealed the award recipients by institutional sector.
Steidle has already become a well-known figure among women who have recently developed an interest in drone piloting. She often appears in lectures on "Drones and Women" in the United States. The author noted in materials distributed by the selection committee, "Living on flat land most of the time, I naturally became interested in images viewed from above and marine life."
The photographer captured the moment when a humpback whale came up to the surface to breathe air and then dived back down into the sea from just 150m off the coast of his neighborhood using a drone. The scene where a sea predator, the spinner shark, breaks into a school of menhaden, a type of herring, was also filmed using the drone camera. In the work titled "Another World," eagle rays are shown sneaking up on their prey in formation. The scene where the eagle rays, well-aligned in a large group, stir up the sand on the seabed is also depicted in the work titled "Concerto." The author said, "Searching for unique themes and moments from a bird's eye perspective is truly exhilarating," and noted, "Aerial photography is still an unexplored area and offers many possibilities."
Traditionally, photographers have captured aerial photos using fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, or hot air balloons. Recently, the advent of affordable, high-quality cameras mounted on high-performance drones has provided more opportunities. For many photographers, drones are becoming a new eye for viewing the world.
This award was established for the first time this year. It was created to support the efforts of photographers who challenge this emerging field of aerial photography by discovering impressive images taken from the sky. Noted photographers David Evans and Peter Eastway led the establishment of the award. The two based the new aerial photography sector on their experience gained from operating the International Landscape Photographer of the Year Awards since 2014.
Despite being the first competition, the response was unexpectedly enthusiastic. A total of 1549 works were submitted from around the world. A jury composed of leading aerial photographers and landscape photographers selected this year's aerial photographer of the year award through evaluations of four photo works and also selected single works for the aerial photography award, as well as special awards in four categories: black and white, drone, abstract, and chairperson's choice.
The selection committee emphasized the significance of aerial photography, stating, "Just by slightly changing the viewpoint from 1.5m (the height commonly used for camera shots) you can see objects with completely new eyes." ChosunBiz introduced key award-winning works with high-quality photos with the cooperation of the organizers.
◇Breathtaking landscapes of glaciers, volcanoes, and animals
Spanish photographer Daniel Vine Garcia secured second place in the aerial photographer of the year category. He received the award for his volcanic photographs taken in Iceland and Argentina. In his work "Smoking Skull," he captured the cooling appearance of the Fagradalsfjall volcano in southern Iceland. The view of red lava can be seen through the cracked stone of hardened volcanic rock, resembling a skull enraged. The smoke rising above the volcano appears like cigarette smoke, creating a bizarre natural illusion.
American photographer David Swindler ranked third in the aerial photographer of the year award with images of flamingos and pelicans seen from the sky, as well as the unique playa terrain (a vegetated desert basin) of the desert. Swindler captured a scene of seven flamingos flying in formation over Lake Nakuru in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya.
The organizers awarded the aerial photography award to authors who submitted single works. Australian photographer Ignacio Palacios topped the list with a work capturing the sunrise over Cono De Arita, which rises sharply over the salt desert in the northern Andes of Argentina. The author captured the enchanting anti-twilight rays that appear in the sky either during sunrise or sunset.
American photographer Tyler Stern captured the scene of a glacier seen from above and came in second place in the aerial photography category. Stern recorded the moment when a glacier in northeast Greenland National Park melted rapidly due to climate change, revealing unexpected tree-like patterns in the sea. Thomas Vizziani, a Canadian photographer who placed third, also focused on glaciers facing crises due to climate change.
The author photographed the stream of water pouring down from the Bråsvellbreen glacier on the Austfonna Ice Cap in Svalbard, Norway, from the sky. This phenomenon reveals the serious reality of climate change. It has been observed that ice begins to melt from this glacier much earlier than the start of summer, with the melted water stream extending as long as 45km.
◇Special awards in black and white, abstract, and drone sectors have also been established
The selection committee established special awards to encourage more photographers' participation. This year, award recipients were announced in special categories for black and white photography, drones, abstract, and chairperson's recommendation. The organizers noted that they plan to change the categories annually to maintain interest and excitement regarding the awards.
Australian photographer Barbara Brown received a special award in the black and white photography category for her aerial view of the geometric and dramatic surface of a salt lake commonly found in the Goldfields region of Western Australia.
Norwegian photographer Paul Hermansen was selected as the first recipient of the special award in the drone sector, which is presented to photographers who obtain images rarely seen through outstanding drone operation. He captured a polar bear comfortably resting and filling its belly while lying on its back in Svalbard, Norway, in a shot taken with a zoom lens attached to the drone camera. The image conveys a sense of both harshness and tranquility as the bear lounges after eating a hunted sea lion.
The special award in the abstract sector, given to the author who took the most artistic photos, went to Australian artist Colin Leonhardt. He photographed the alumina waste dam near Collie in Western Australia from above. The facility for processing the red byproducts generated from alumina mining resembles an owl.
The special award for chairperson's recommendation was awarded to French photographer Fabien Guitard for his photo of two seals comfortably resting on the ice. He captured the moment when two seals were leisurely resting on the ice while floating in the Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon in southern Iceland.
The selection committee evaluated that the top 101 works, including this winning piece, received high scores and that each has its own uniqueness, with no significant difference in quality. The award-winning works of this year's International Aerial Photographer Awards, along with the top-scoring 101 pieces, can be viewed on the official website (www.internationalaerialphotographer.com). The committee also plans to publish a book featuring these 101 works.
References
Official site of the International Aerial Photographer of the Year https:// internationalaerialphotographer.com/