The EISA Maestro 2023 photo contest was on the theme of The Animal Kingdom. Here we showcase the excellent portfolios by the EISA Maestro International winners, which includes some incredible wildlife images.
In addition to its awards for best photographic products of the year, the Expert Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) runs EISA Maestro – its own annual pan-European photography competition open to amateur and semi-professional photographers. This year’s theme was The Animal Kingdom. The winning portfolios from each of the 16 participating EISA countries were judged together and the winners of the International contest have now been decided.
The overall winner was Magnus Berggren from Sweden, who takes home €1,500 and the EISA Maestro 2023 Gold Trophy. The UK’s winner, Angi Wallace, was second and wins €1,000 and a trophy, while third-placed Pål Hermansen from Norway wins €750 and a trophy. All three also have their portfolios featured in the 16 EISA photography magazines. The Public’s Choice Award went to Germany’s Mirjam Radke, who wins €1,000. Visit eisa.eu/maestro
EISA Maestro 2023 International Winner: Magnus Berggren, Sweden
Image: Magnus Berggren
Magnus Berggren took up photography in 2007, but it was not until some years later, in 2018, that he decided to focus on wildlife photography. ‘I started photographing small birds and just got hooked,’ he explains. ‘But I also like to photograph other animals, of course.’
Image: Magnus Berggren
Image: Magnus Berggren
His image style is distinctive and dramatic. ‘I try to plan how the background looks as I try to get the animal separated from the background. I want to attempt to show the beauty of the animal by editing the photos a bit dramatically to bring out their soul in the photos. I’ve been developing my style for a few years and it’s still evolving.’
Image: Magnus Berggren
Magnus uses a Sony Alpha A7 IV with a Sony 400mm F2.8 lens, but hopes to upgrade to a Sony 600mm F4 in the future. ‘It would be better suited to smaller birds,’ he says. He edits his photographs on a PC with Lightroom Classic and Topaz Sharpen.
Image: Magnus Berggren
Image: Magnus Berggren
EISA Maestro 2023 International Winner 2nd Place: Angi Wallace, UK
Blue carpenter bee, Sony A7 III, 150mm, 1/200sec at f/5.6, ISO 100
‘I am an ex nurse turned multi award-winning photographer with a passion for close up and macro, nature, still life, creative portraiture, landscapes and gig photography,’ says Angi Wallace. Over 18 years of enjoying photography, she has relished learning various genres, concentrating initially on capturing images of amphibians and reptiles (another hobby of hers). More recently she has been focusing on flora, fungi and other close up images of nature, as well as honing her skills in still life, focus-stacking macro and food photography. ‘I produce a lot of my photography from home, using a mini studio set up in our dining room, simply because my health does not allow for energy demanding activities,’ she explains.
See Angi’s full portfolio here.
EISA Maestro 2023 International Winner Third place: Pål Hermansen, Norway
Image: Pål Hermansen
Image: Pål Hermansen
Pål Hermansen works as a photographer in the field of nature and arts. He attended Robert Meyer College of Art in Oslo, and also holds degrees in dentistry and homeopathy. In his work, he mainly focuses on the interaction between man and nature, existential landscapes and creative wildlife photography.
Image: Pål Hermansen
Image: Pål Hermansen
Image: Pål Hermansen
Pål has written and/or illustrated 40 books and is represented in the 2013 international portfolio book, Masters of Nature Photography (BBC/Natural History Museum, London 2013). His images have appeared in a number of publications such as National Geographic, Orion, GEO and BBC Wildlife Magazine. He is a member of FFF (The Norwegian Association for Fine Art Photographers) and is represented in the group 100 Norwegian Photographers (100norwegianphotographers.no). He is also member of the art collective HAM together with Mats Andersson and Erik Malm and is an honorary member and member of the board of NN (Norwegian Nature Photographers Association).
Image: Pål Hermansen
Image: Pål Hermansen
Image: Pål Hermansen
EISA Maestro Public Choice: Mirjam Radke, Germany
Image: Mirjam Radke
Image: Mirjam Radke
Whenever German travel blogger Mirjam Radke is selecting a new destination for an upcoming trip, she admits that the local wildlife in a country plays a crucial part in her decision making. This 38-year-old amateur photographer from Munich has captured outstanding images of orangutans in Sumatra, lions in Tanzania and hippos in Uganda. She is more than aware of one essential quality required in wildlife photography – wherever she goes, she will need a lot of patience. Mirjam knows that it will take time to adapt to a place, learn about the resident animals, their habitat and their behaviour as well as finding the perfect environment for outstanding photographs.
Image: Mirjam Radke
Image: Mirjam Radke
If there are no far-flung destinations on her travel agenda, there’s always the Alps close to her hometown, where she captures portraits of marmots or takes photographs of deer in the early hours of the morning. She is more than prepared for these trips, often carrying up to 12kg of camera equipment in her backpack.
Image: Mirjam Radke
Image: Mirjam Radke
‘Animals are definitely at the top of my list of favourite subjects to photograph,’ the self-taught photographer says. So, of course she wouldn’t miss entering this year’s Maestro competition. Asked about the wildlife destination of her dreams, Radke is quick to answer. It’s Antarctica, where she would love nothing more than to photograph seals and penguins.
See more of the best photography competitions to enter
Creator of the Year competition
Emerging Talent Award Competition
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