Who is Australasia's Top Emerging Photographer 2018?

Who is Australasia’s Top Emerging Photographer 2018? We can now finally reveal the winner of our annual contest to discover the next generation of the best emerging talent across the region.

Now in its 10th year, in 2018 the competition attracted a total of 924 entries (5,544 images submitted) across the 10 categories. In order to arrive at the category winners, a total of 460 votes were tallied, before being checked, rechecked, and then weighted. A further 170 votes were tallied in order to arrive at the overall winner and overall runner-up. We relied on an expert panel of judges comprising 35 top industry experts from Australia, and around the globe.

A massive congratulations must go to Leah Kennedy, the overall winner, Australasia’s Top Emerging Photographer 2018. Kennedy also won the Landscape category. In 2017, she placed third in the category. Along with the prestigious title, Kennedy also takes home the grand prize – a Fujifilm X-Pro2 & XF 35mm f/2 lens valued at $3,298, from our major sponsor, Fujifilm, along with $3,000. See her winning portfolio here.

Congratulations and recognition must also go to the overall runner-up, and winner of the Student category, Michael Borzillo. A very solid effort. And third place overall is Aidan Williams, who won the Sport category.

Keep an eye on the Capture website as category winners and runners-up are revealed later. To find out all the results including all the winners, runners-up, and Top 20 across the 10 categories, and see some of the amazing work, check out the May/June edition online from 26 April or your favourite newsagent later in the months Those with Commended and Highly Commended submissions will be notified via e-mail in June 2018.

What the judges thought

The winning folio stood out with a sparse, consistent elegance of intriguing subject matter shot under difficult conditions. It is engaging and thought-provoking with a memorable composition that speaks of photography’s original promise of freezing a moment in time with found subject matter. – John Gollings AM

I just loved this series of images the minute I saw them. Firstly, the story throughout the series has been given the same treatment, tonality, colour palette, and starkness across the board. All of the images invite the viewer to look into each shot and scrutinise the process, and consider whether the image is in fact an illustration or a photograph. The photographer has taken the harshness of the scenes and turned it into an art piece. The series is powerful, and you can’t help be mesmerised by the subject matter. The photographer has been able to create such a strong series by keeping the frames simple, and understanding that it is the simplicity which provides the images with their uniqueness. Each image is engaging and, above all, shows to me the photographer’s individuality. After all, that is what I am looking for as a judge – a point of difference. – Sally Brownbill

Aerial photography is fast becoming a popular genre, and more often than not the results often seem as though you’ve seen them before. What I love about these pictures is their originality. The subject matter is compelling, composition is simple, yet strong, and the overall imagery cohesive. The result is a beautiful, memorable series that I’d love to hang on my own wall. – Sean Izzard

I found this beautiful portfolio both gratifyingly cohesive and refreshingly exploratory in nature. Although it ranges from busy to minimalist across its breadth, it still ties together wonderfully well through its consistently delicate colour palette, exquisite subtlety of detail and strong sense of design. Each image lends a certain air of graphical precision and the impression of clear deliberateness to what the photographer has chosen to include and exclude in the well-considered compositions.

The viewing perspective lends a kind of detached voyeurism to me, and speaks a lot potentially of the photographer themselves. In short, a very solidly presented, intriguing, and visually appealing body of work! – Paul Hoelen

To our supporters and sponsors

Much thanks must go to our major sponsor, Fujifilm, and all our category sponsors: DJI, Dragon Image/RED, EIZO, Jinbei, LaCie, Merrell, Momento Pro, National Portrait Gallery, QNAP, and Sally Brownbill for their generosity and commitment to supporting emerging photographic talent.

This year the total prize pool for Australasia’s Top Emerging Photographers was worth over $18,500, with $11,000 in prizes, plus cash prizes of $7,500. The Emerging Photographer of the Year receives the grand prize – a Fujifilm X-Pro2 & XF 35mm f/2 lens valued at $3,298, plus $3,000. Category winners receive prizes from our category sponsors plus $450.