UCOL photography students a threat to Aussie professionals

20 September 2013

UCOL photography students pose threat to Aussie professionals

UCOL Photography staff and students continue to assert their creative flair, this time showing the Australians how it’s done.

Out of more than 3000 entries, UCOL photographers claimed a total of 21 medals - seven Gold, four Silvers with Distinction, and 10 Silver, at the Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP) annual print competitions in Melbourne last week.

What makes the result more impressive is the five students who submitted entries, and won ten of those medals, were competing directly against accredited professional photographers from Australia and New Zealand.

UCOL Photography Lecturer and recently named NZ Professional Photographer of the Year Kaye Davis, says as there was no separate student category to compete in, students were up against the best professional photographers Australia could offer.

“I think members of the AIPP are a little nervous of the high standard of photography coming out of New Zealand,” she says. “Our UCOL students’ work definitely stood up against some pretty tough competition.”

And Kaye should know, for the third year running she has been a judge at the prestigious industry event. She was one of around 50 international judges and adjudicated in the Illustrative, Commercial, Landscape and Book Awards categories.

She also returned to New Zealand as the winner of the Illustrative category. Kaye’s four entries in the category won a Gold, two Silver with Distinction and one Silver award, enough to earn her first place.

Under the AIPP rules, New Zealand photographers are not eligible for the Australian Photographer of the Year award, but they are permitted to claim a best Category prize.
Bachelor of Applied Visual Imaging (BAVI) students Amy Fowler and Penny Aspin were also in Melbourne for the event. They were invited and partially funded by the AIPP, to attend and help behind the scenes of the print judging.

Amy won the Student Assistant of the Year title at the Epson/NZIPP Iris Professional Photography Awards last month. Her AIPP entries gained her two medals, one Gold and one Silver.

Amy’s partner and UCOL Diploma in Photographic Imaging graduate Kelvin Gilbert claimed three Gold medals.

UCOL photography students Stephanie Hedges, Anu Sefton and Heather Hocken each won two Silver medals and Jeffrey Clifford claimed a Gold and a Silver with Distinction.

UCOL Photography Lecturer Anna Glasgow had a four medal haul with a Gold, Silver with Distinction, and two Silver.

Head of UCOL’s School of Photography, Arts and Design Rachel Hoskin says, “these results are further proof that our BAVI and Diploma in Photography programmes remain New Zealand’s leading tertiary qualifications in photography; to the point where our students can compete to such a high international standard and gain recognition in a very competitive industry.”

For more information visit www.ucol.ac.nz

ENDS

© Scoop Media