It is time to enter the latest round of our Amateur Photographer of the Year competition (APOY), the biggest and best of its kind… the theme is Street
We are now into round nine of APOY, with the theme of Street.
With APOY’s varied categories, there should be a round for you, no matter what you like to shoot. You might choose to enter just one category or enter them all with the aim of taking home the main prize and, of course, the title of Amateur Photographer of the Year 2021.
The competition is open to all amateur photographers* and we have again teamed up with Photocrowd, who will be hosting the competition on a simple and intuitive platform. This year we have two new categories. Under-21s can enter the Young Amateur Photographer of the Year, with each category winner receiving a £250 voucher for MPB, and the overall winner being awarded a £500 voucher.
Finally, there’s a camera club category, where you can accumulate points for your society. The most successful club will receive a voucher for £500.
*For the purposes of this competition, an amateur photographer is defined as someone who earns 10% or less of their income from photography or photographic services.
Send us your best street shots
Street photography is accessible to most, but it’s challenging to capture successfully. Paying attention to the everyday movements of folk and spotting the extraordinary within the mundane is one thing, but capturing a scene unfold in front of you at the perfect moment is another. It’s this forward thinking that is key to great photography. For inspiration, look at the likes of Cartier-Bresson and Vivian Maier or contemporary shooters such as Niall McDiarmid and Nick Turpin.
As well as capturing candid moments, look for dramatic light, which gives a structure to the image. Picture credit Graeme Youngson
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Your guest judge
For this round, your guest judge is Peter Dench, a UK-based photographer, writer, presenter, educator and curator. His accolades include a World Press Photo award for his reportage, Drinking of England. Solo books include Alcohol & England and The British Abroad. He has also been commissioned to write by The New Yorker, Telegraph Magazine and a number of photography journals.
What you win
Take your pick from MPB’s huge catalogue of used gear
The winner of each round of APOY receives a £500 voucher to spend on anything at MPB. From top-end digital medium format cameras to entry-level DSLRs, telephoto zooms and wideangle lenses, MPB is a one-stop shop for used kit. And of course, you can use your voucher towards your dream piece of kit, if it happens to cost more than £500.
The Fujifilm X-T1 was the first of the iconic models in this popular range, with 16.3MP, a 200-6400 ISO range and 11 film-simulation modes. It’s ideal for street photography, and is available at MPB for £299 in excellent condition. Any street photographer will tell you a single prime lens is better than any zoom, so why not combine the X-T1 with the Fujifilm XF 35mm f/2 R WR? It’s equivalent to 53mm in full frame, often seen as the classic focal length for candids.
Find it at MPB for between £299 and £349. There are second- and third-placed prizes of £100 and £50 vouchers respectively, while the winner of the Youth category wins a £250 voucher. Check out www.mpb.com to take your pick from thousands of items.
