Photo by Jeremy Hernandez | Grand prize winner Emily Hamann with BPCC faculty and staff at the Golden Lens awards announcement on January 31st at The Remington Garage in downtown Shreveport.
The results of the second annual Golden Lens Photography Competition are in and Emily Hamann claimed the top prize with her piece, “LVVRS Came to Win.”
Hamann’s photograph was selected out of 30 submissions as the overall winner of $1,000. Hannah Spence was voted the People’s Choice winner of $500 for the entry “Hidden Below.”
The awards were announced January 31st at The Remington Garage in downtown Shreveport. Jennifer Robison, BPCC Photography Instructor, was the visionary behind Golden Lens and said Golden Lens is the intersection of commercial and fine art photography.
“Golden Lens celebrates the photographer that merges the narrative & commercial aspects of representing a specific time and place,” Robison said. “I am grateful to the photography community that got out there and challenged themselves to make captivating images in the extreme time-based media contest that is Golden Lens. You are the Prize, and I cannot wait for next year!”
Golden Lens is made possible through a partnership with the BPCC Foundation and the Prize Foundation. This year’s exhibition consists of 30 photographs taken during Prize Fest season, in October 2023, and selected by a jury panel of experts. This exciting photography competition invites photographers of all levels, from beginners to professionals, to capture the unique essence of Shreveport and Bossier City.
Juror Peter Hay, co-director/arts manager of PROArtes Mexico, said there were many photographs that stood out from the larger selection, making it tough to narrow down the selection to the images ultimately included in the show. He mulled over a number of factors when selecting the winning photograph.
“Most of us live with a tiny camera in our hands all the time. I can only imagine there are billions of snapshots and video clips of concerts taking up phone memories all over the world. But it is the ability to capture with such accuracy and clarity a moment of interaction in the performance, probably full of people and in a tough lighting situation, that led me to select the photograph of the two band members interacting and the drummer in the background,” Hay said. “There are several great images of performance or portraits of people in the show that are just as well made, but it was the expression and interaction that latched onto me-the capturing of a story in one click of a button.”
This year’s exhibition is currently on display in the John R. McConathy Administration Building on BPCC’s Bossier campus, located at 6220 East Texas Street, through the end of February.
For more information, visit https://www.prizefest.com/goldenlens/.
Photo by Jeremy Hernandez| Pictured (left to right) are Hannah Spence, People’s Choice Winner, and Emily Hamann, Grand Prize Winner.