I'm a winner!

So while I was in a meeting this morning I was sent an email that I thought was a joke. It said that Joe McNally (a personal favorite photographer and pioneer of creative off-the-camera flash photography) had given a photo of mine an award for a contest he conducted. This contest was for creating interesting photos that use his "The Moment it Clicks" concept of telling stories with creative lighting. As it turns out, the email was legit and I had indeed won the contest in which tens of thousands of other photos were entered.

The photo that won was one I took at Skateworld of my sister, Olivia:


Joe made the comment:

"The skater rental dept. portrait....just great, simple use of light and graphics and mood. Sets the scene, and tells the story of the young lady behind the counter pretty much wishing she were out with her boyfriend instead of supplying skates to a bunch of screaming youngsters....love it."

What's cool is that when I took the photo that is exactly what I told Olivia to portray when I took the photo...and she pulled it off flawlessly, showing just what an amazing model she is.

I honestly feel so humbled that one of my photography idols recognized a photo of mine. Just his compliment was enough but I won't turn down the shwag that also came with winning. :)