Christmas Cover 2021 competition winner revealed!

Each year we give you the chance to see your photo on the cover of the Christmas issue. Below we show the winner, plus some of the shortlisted entries!

Christmas Cover 2021 competition winner

Cranberry Christmas Tree by Julia Briggs

Nikon D5500, 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6, 1/100sec, f/6.3, ISO 2500

‘I used to shoot mostly travel and landscapes but during the first lockdown I discovered that I loved shooting still life and macro at home,’ says Julia, who lives in Ilkeston, Derbyshire. ‘I wanted a Christmas tree theme and was thinking about what I could use, then had the idea of the frozen cranberries. They’re red, and the ice on them looked a bit like snow. I added cinnamon sticks for the base and some star anise for tree decorations.’ This was an inspired idea, beautifully executed, and most importantly it ‘worked’ as a cover.

Runner up

Star Lantern by Lorraine Mansfield

Sony RX10 IV at 85mm (equiv), 1/1000sec, f/3.5, ISO 6400

Lorraine’s entry came within a gnat’s whisker of being chosen. In the end we went for Julia’s more vibrant and colourful image, but this atmospheric picture would also have made a fine cover. Lorraine only took up photography last year as a lockdown activity, buying a bridge camera to photograph the birds on her walks in the Quantock Hills, in Somerset, where she lives. ‘I photographed the lantern in my hallway with my husband holding it, with some fairy lights on the wall behind,’ she tells us. This is a great effort, especially from such a novice.