INFO PAGE
Sodwana Bay Underwater Photo Shootout 2002
Shootout's A Blast
Its so good to see the courage people bring with them when participating in this event.
Lets face it, people’s photos sit right there between their hearts and their egos, whether
you’re a professional or a novice. It is brave to have your pictures projected onto a big
screen in front of around 250 people, most of whom know something about photography.
Its also very brave to be a published, acknowledged photographer and compete in a Shootout
situation, where you could have absolutely ghastly luck - and still have your photos projected to
a few 100 people, most of whom have a fabulous capacity for ragging! There’s no question that
this is a sporting crowd. The competitors make this event what it is - FUN!
The Sodwana Bay Photo Shootout 2002 was a roaring success - great conditions, brilliant sponsors
and prizes and gorgeous pictures.
Please mouse-over article photos for info. Most people pics by
ROWAN DUVEL
Debz Oscroft
Debz is the gal who started the Sodwana Photo Shootout in 2000. For two years Debbie Oscroft
of Coral Divers, took on the enormous task, of putting this event together, investing many of her
evenings and her leave to make sure that this event took place. Thanks Debz for starting South
Africa’s largest Underwater Photo Shootout.
This year, she could take
part in the comp. Both her slide entries took well-deserved prizes. Congratulations Debz.
Mouse-over HERE to see where
winning photos will be published.
Prizes
Click here - IT'LL KNOCK YOUR SOX OFF!. Once again the sponsors were generous and the prizes were spectacular.
New Video Category
This year, for the first time, the Sodwana Shootout took Video Entries. Since the category was new, there were few entries, but the standard they set was spectacular. Gordon Hiles, a very accomplished professional videographer himself, judged these entries, explaining how much work went into these edited 3 minute clips. You really impressed us guys. Hope to see the category grow.
The Judges
We were there and we saw what they did! It became clear how this mix worked well together. Lyn de Lacy Smith of Hartley’s Oceans and Islands brought with her a wealth of international dive and travel experiences. Chris Riley of SA Photographer magazine brought his knowledge of professional photography as well as an understanding of commercial viability of images. Lyn Frasier, editor of Divestyle magazine brought all her general knowledge of South Africa’s diving as well as her years of working with UW images. Peter Pinnock is a well-known, much published professional UW photographer. His kind of expertise was vital to the process.
AfricanScuba.com
On-line entries went very smoothly, affording people all over the country easy access to the registration process. Thanks to all the entrants for the responsible way they used the system. Thank you also for the compliments about our website. We were there to participate in the registration process on arrival and to take your entries as 'impartial registrars'. Thanks to Fred’s day-long scanning exercise, your Shootout entries are up on our site, so TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS! Our congratulations to all organisers, sponsors and entrants for a grand show.
New Time Slot
By its very nature a Shootout takes place over a limited amount of time. Guaranteeing two consecutive perfect days in November is dicey, so it looks like its going to move to May next year. This time slot will avoid most financial year-ends and exam-time. Please REGISTER so we can keep you posted.
The Winning Pic
The top prize this year was a dive trip to Papua New Guinea worth R44 000, sponsored by Hartleys Oceans & Islands!
No wonder Andrew Woodburn and other entrants arrived a few days early to get their ducks in a row.
The way I heard it,
there was this fabulous shrimp, a gogo that lives in a sea cucumber. Great subject, right - two fascinating creatures interacting.
They don’t move about much. I imagine Andrew spent time figuring the best angles, best time of day, so he was ready as can
be.
You may have noticed that Andrew won the competition with a fabulous picture of a whaleshark. What happened?
Well I heard that Andrew couldn’t find the shrimp come Shootout time. However the conditions were irresistible, so I guess he
set himself up with a wide-angle lens and a whaleshark came by. Luckily Andrew knew just what to do. Andrew’s
Winning Photo also won the Popular Choice Award, so the judges must have been doing it right.
An Invitation
The concensus is: Next Year, Everyone’s Invited! If the competition attracts enough photographers with 'point & shoot' style equipment next year, a new category may be created. The Shootout is a rewarding, fun, learning experience for all. Remember, everyone’s at the mercy of Mother Nature and Dumb Luck, so anything can happen. Africa’s Not For Sissies so pluck up your courage and have a go.
Rowan Duvel
Rowan Duvel, chairman of the Gauteng Underwater Photographic Society took the driving seat for the organization for the competition this year. He also took prizes for all 3 of his entries. Rowan entered the Open/Digital category as well as the slide category. Congratulations on a great show and your splendid entries Rowan.
Event Facilitated By
GUPS - Gauteng Underwater Photographic Society
AfricanScuba.com
Sodwana Bay Lodge Scuba Centre
Coral Divers
Hartleys Oceans & Islands
View the Pics
Competition photos remain available!!
However some info has been deleted from this page since it is now out of date.
