Articles


The Secret to Award-Winning Photos? Perfect Your Details, Lean into Your Joy

January 7, 2022

By Rangefinder

Photo © Kenneth Lam

Jurors from WPPI The Annual advise entrants on the ingredients for creating successful photographs.

It’s a fundamental rule in photography that the smallest of details can profoundly change a viewer’s understanding of an image. With the high-stakes live judging of WPPI The Annual, where the difference between award distinctions—or no award at all—can be a single point, details matter more than ever.

“When we are creating images, we can be so consumed with the subject of the image that we ignore other things,” says Audrey Woulard, a high school senior photographer, Nikon Ambassador and juror of this year’s competition. “You may have captured a gorgeous image that deserves the highest merit, but small details missed in the background causes the image to lose points. Definitely nail the impact, but do not overlook any details that will cloud the intent and feeling of the image.”

This year’s extended deadline is January 21, with live judging taking place the following month at the WPPI Conference & Expo in Las Vegas. 

An emotional family moment with a bride and her dad won in WPPI The Annual last year.
Photo © Mauro Cantelmi

Last year’s Grand Award winners—the highest distinction given—each featured remarkable compositional details in addition to meticulous technical precision. Mauro Cantelmi froze a moment of anticipation as the bride reached to her father’s outstretched hand to be led into the ceremony. Feng He placed a couple in two semicircle windows of a grand Romanesque building, the groom’s dark silhouette offsetting the rich quality of light on the bride’s white dress. And Wesley Channell created a mind-bending M.C. Escher-like, black-and-white composition featuring multiple perspectives all captured in-camera.

Photo © Wesley Channell

And details aren’t just about the elements in your photo but also in the nuances of light, exposure and color. For photographers who have been staring at the same image for too long, trying to perfect it, WPPI Grand Master and juror Susan Stripling advises that there are other ways to look with fresh eyes.

[Read: Why Enter WPPI’s Photo Competitions? Susan Stripling Explains]

“Flip your image upside down and narrow your eyes,” she recommends. “This might sound a little wild, but I find that flipping it and making the view fuzzy brings my eyes quickly to hot spots and super dark shadows that can distract a judge from the main subject.”

There’s other considerations, too, from the titles—which can add another layer to the storytelling—to the color temperature of your matte and print.

But, as renowned fine-art photographer and juror Cat Ford-Coates reminds entrants in WPPI The Annual, your best work can be the result of simple, focused storytelling—not overcomplicated images that try to do it all.

award-winning photo of bride and groom outdoors by Feng He.
Photo © Feng He

“You don’t need 4,000 props, clothing, lights and complicated components,” she says. “Instead, treat your story like Coco Chanel treats getting dressed: assemble, go to the mirror and begin taking things away. Get to the CORE of your story and let those details shine.”

What aspects of image-making light your fire? That’s what Ford-Coates says to follow. “Print comp is the perfect time to explore every avenue of what’s exciting for you in creating powerful imagery. What have you found to be your swan song with your style? Lighting? Wardrobe? Lens choice? Lean into your JOY with intention and watch your work rise.

Enter this year’s competition by January 21 at wppiawards.com.