Congratulations to Ruben Fino, winner of the 2021 Australian Photography Awards Junior Category. We are so thrilled to see this category grow in both strength and ideas each year. In 2021, for the first time in the history of the awards we had the pleasure of inviting junior photographers to join us on the committee.
When our committee viewed Ruben’s photograph we were immediately struck by the scene. It is a photograph which brings together atmosphere and dramatic lighting while remaining grounded in time, place and meaning. While street photography can skirt issues of ethics, we feel that Ruben’s approach communicated both dignity and respect.
Beyond the image, we were delighted to see Ruben applying critical ideas to the photograph, locating meaning in both the facemask and multiculturalism within Australia.
We would also like to congratulate Madeline Simmons and Ales Zib-Poole, recipients of Second and Third place respectively, as well as the other 20 finalists in this year’s Junior category.
Finally, our deepest gratitude to Nikon Australia, Urth and Format Framing for supporting the Portrait category in 2021. It is through these organisation’s generous support that we are able to continue highlighting the most exciting Australian photography year after year.
FINALISTS
Madeline Simmons
Fly | Looking at my image after I look it, reminded me of the song Fly by Nick Drake. To me, it symbolizes freedom and power and it makes me feel alive and free right along with it. 🙂
Callum Jack
Lighthouse | This is an image I captured of the lighthouse at Wollongong harbour. I love the sense of motion in the clouds captured in this image which makes it a lot more interesting.
Callum Jack
Sea Cliff Bridge | I absolutely adore Sea Cliff Bridge because of its perfect curves, modern feel and stunning views. I think I captured its beauty in this image.
Jade Coe
Timeless adventures | My image is a flat lay of my great grandfathers watch as the centre piece. with his old wallet, coins and wood hand plane. to add adventure there is a crocodile skull and a tigers eye crystal. as well as an old book to add texture.
Lucy Mil
My Underwater World | I came across another world in fresh water ecosystems and loved the life and color so much I began doing underwater photography
Serena Hawkins
A flash of blue | Superb Fairy Wrens have a tendency to never stay still long enough for a photo. What are they trying to hide?
Miwa Katsuragi
Canopy Mirror | This year we have been trying to get away from our house and screens and get into nature when we can. Lockdown has made this more difficult, but because of that challenge, it's clearer to see and feel just how special nature is. It's nice to wander and be lost in thought so I want to keep more than a memory of it with me. I take photos of things that surprise or amaze me on our nature walks at Lake Elizabeth.
Avalon Woodward
This image encapsulates the beauty of Australian nature by capturing a swamp wallaby in its habitat. The inquisitive creature was found on a bushwalk in the Booderee National Park in the pristine coastal region of Jarvis Bay. I am thankful that adventures like these are at our fingertips in our plentiful nation of biodiversity. This encounter deepened my understanding of the delicate balance of nature and the importance of wildlife conservation. Experiences like these inspire me as a photographer and further spark my interest in wildlife.
Alyssa Petschel
Reflections | The image tells the story of a person getting a photo taken, and demonstrates the reflections that one feels as they go through the process of having their portrait photographed. The use of black and white photography provides an opportunity to reflect on the subject's pure beauty - rather than what is seen through the use of artificial filters and coloured photography.
SHORTLISTED
In alphabetical order
Abigael Reimann
On The Job | I took this photo on a Sunday at church. Bees play a critical part in the eco-system. When you have bees around flowers and plants, it tells you the system is healthy. To me, they are like the canary in the coal mine. They tell you whether things are right and healthy. They are so little, yet they do so much.
Amelia Mason
This Humpty Dumpty Photograph demonstrates Humpy Dumpty falling off a wall, he is made of up- cycled items including Googley eyes from an Op shop and a cracked eggshell.
Amitie Hairs
Morning Yoga | We have been in lockdown forever!! Every morning I go down to the paddock and my pony Star does his yoga while he eats…it happens EVERY day!!
Andrew Wells
Golden ocean | A photo I took of the Southern Ocean on the coast of robe South Australia
Bella Stenzel
Heart of the Seaside | This image depicts the centre of an extremely large palm tree on the seaside. I see the centre of the tree as mother nature, as all of the leaves are sprouting from the same area, representing mother nature giving them life. Most of the leaves are bright, healthy and full of colour. Mother nature's impact on the life around her gives incentive for us to protect it. Just like mother nature holds the palm tree together, we must hold the world together by taking proper care of the environment.
Caitlyn Nostrini
Breakfast at Barn Hill station | A hungry Red Winged Parrot staring me down before breakfast
Callum Jack
Powerful Kookaburra | I love this image I captured of a magnificent kookaburra because he is in such a powerful stance with his breast puffed out. He was super cooperative when I was taking this photo, he just stood there and let me capture him.
Callum Jack
Rocky Islands at Bombo | I captured this image with my drone and I love it because I know that many people walk there and see these rocks but they have never seen them this way, from this perspective.
Campbell Smith
The Catch | This spider's abdomen is actually more frightening than it's face. what looks like black eyes and white fangs, is really the spider's bum! Campbell Smith 7 years
Chloe Lefmann
This photo is called 'Different Perspective' because you would usually look a different way. As well as that to me this photo could be many more things such as someone sitting under a tree and thinking about having a different perspective on someone or a place.
Darcy Etherington
Paddlers at Sunset | It was one of those balmy Queensland evenings so my Mum and I decided to visit the local creek for a walk. We watched a stand up paddle boarder and as the sun began to set suddenly a perfect line of three paddlers fleetingly passed us by. It was the perfect end to a summer day.
Derek Thirionet
The beautiful Romeo. I love my Tonkinese cats. They bring me so much joy and I love taking photos of them. This is one of my favourites. Photographer: Derek Thirionet - Age 10 years old
Elise Ryan
Tiny Monster Flower | This tiny flower has features that look like tiny little teeth, in a tiny open mouth.
Grace Bousimon
Sunset Silhouette | This photo was taken on the Warners Bay Foreshore walk. It's a beautiful silhouette created by the stunning sunset and soaring seagulls.
Jaime Clarke
Blinding Lights | An image capturing the sun as beams through the horizontal blinds and lands on the black and white square on the ground.
Kate Gillespie
Slow | In this short life, may we learn to appreciate the little things - the forgotten, the underestimated, the taken for granted…
Katie Griffiths
Bad News | The girl is suffering from a deep seated sense of loss as she receives bad news, slowly as the colour and joy drains away, fading from her life.
Katja Ekkert
Daydreaming Fairywren | On a cool spring afternoon, there was a small female fairywren, sitting on a branch, daydreaming about what she wished she was doing. After a while, loud and noisy people came near her and she decided to dash off into the trees. My name is Katja, I’m 13 yo. I took this photo of a female blue wren in Nannup, W.A., after a few tries I managed to get this picture which I love because the focus is mainly on the bird and the colours of the bird and the branch go very well with each other.
Maddison Shaw
Alluring | I took this photo one day when I was on the train watching the people coming in and out of trains and staring at the raindrops that were falling down the window and loved the way they fell and were all so pretty even though the weather was so bad outside. I took this photo on my simple iPhone.
Madison Head
Pigaboo | I took this photo of some of the pigs on our farm, as they were waiting to be fed. One looked over the fence in a way that looked like she was playing peekaboo.
Miwa Katsuragi
Mountain Mirage |This is a creative effect in my Nikon Coolpix camera that I have been using. (Soften Pictures) It is a selective focus which creates an interesting visual mix in the picture. This foam in a small rock pool is transformed into a snowy mountain with this setting This illusion to the eye feels like it's a painting even though it's a real life photo.
Namita Suresh
This photo was taken just outside my home.I saw the birds and took my chances to take a photo.
Ocean Wilkins
Flow | Series title - Series Titled "Clash of immortality". “Hot air balloons of the sea“Electric blue blob . The common jellyfish 2 m offshore. Margate beach Qld.Ocean Wilkins 10 years old
Patrick Smith
Blue Beetle | I was on a hike at Wilpena Pound, SA, when something blue and shiny caught my eye. I looked down and saw this beetle. I quickly borrowed my mum's camera and took this photograph.
Ruben Fino
Monochrome Droplets | The thing about this image that I like so much is how sharp the focus is on a selected area of the leaf. The water droplets are so sharp and with the monochrome look it enhances the droplets reflection. Getting photos to be sharp isn't always about having the best lens at the end of the day and although this was taken on a stock lens and that just shows that gear isn't the deal breaker at the end of the day, It all comes up to the photographer themselves. Shot on: Canon EOS 550D Lens: Stock 18-55mm f3.5-5.6
Sam Bayes
I learnt to scuba dive last year, and my favourite thing to do is to take pictures of all the amazing creatures I see. I found this moray eel under The Navy Pier in Exmouth, WA. I used an Olympus TG6 with an Ikelite underwater housing and a single Ikelite strobe.
Sam Bayes
Is the coast clear? Octopus peering out from its hole, under Ammo jetty, Perth, Western Australia.
Steph Woodhead
The Purr-fect moment | It was just the purr-fect moment to get the right angle. The sun was making her fur light up and shine.
Taalika Dixon-Jain
Toadstool Tree Size can be deceiving | I took this photo to bring small and sometimes unnoticed life to human size. Would you take shelter under this toadstool tree?
Tristan Lyth
Larapinta Selfie in my tent on a three day hike with my school on the Larapinta Trail, NT
