Winning shot of a an unusual looking spud wins second Potato Photographer of the Year trophy
Overall winner: Fish & Chips by William Ropp(Image credit: William Ropp/Potato Photographer of the Year)
The winner of the second Potato Photographer of the Year competition has been crowned. Again this unusual photo contest has attracted some very inventive entries, and making money for a worthy cause at the same time.
Titled 'Fish & Chips', the winning shot scored French photographer William Ropp over £1,000 in prizes, including a Fujifilm X-T200, a ThinkTank roller bag, and a one-year master subscription to Photocrowd. He says the image was taken as a challenge from a friend who, after art school, ended up a potato seller
“There's something extremely wonderful and weird about this work," says one of the judges, Amy D’Agorne. "The amalgamation of vegetables and animals creates a strange portrait of the everyday food we consume. The fact that the image was taken on a Polaroid camera with just a flashlight is of great credit to the photographer's skill.”
Potato Photographer of the Year is the brainchild of Benedict Brain, professional photographer and Digital Camera columnist, and features a panel of judges including luminaries like Martin Parr.
The idea for the contest was partly inspired by a 2016 photograph of a spud by Kevin Abosch, which sold for a $1 million, and all proceeds go towards the Trussell Trust – a registered charity which supports a nationwide network of food banks in the United Kingdom.
The editor of Digital Camera World, James has 21 years experience as a journalist and started working in the photographic industry in 2014 (as an assistant to Damian McGillicuddy, who succeeded David Bailey as Principal Photographer for Olympus). In this time he shot for clients like Aston Martin Racing, Elinchrom and L'Oréal, in addition to shooting campaigns and product testing for Olympus, and providing training for professionals. This has led him to being a go-to expert for camera and lens reviews, photo and lighting tutorials, as well as industry news, rumors and analysis for publications like Digital Camera Magazine, PhotoPlus: The Canon Magazine, N-Photo: The Nikon Magazine, Digital Photographer and Professional Imagemaker, as well as hosting workshops and talks at The Photography Show. He also serves as a judge for the Red Bull Illume Photo Contest. An Olympus and Canon shooter, he has a wealth of knowledge on cameras of all makes – and a fondness for vintage lenses and instant cameras.
