Photo Contest Winners To Be Announced!
The Photo Contest judges met yesterday at Chick-Fil-A headquartersin Atlanta, where judge Greg Thompson is head of corporate
communications. What a talented panel we have – we were fortunate to get judges of this caliber. Judges Donna Lachance and Grant Miller drove in and
together they went through the 29 portfolios to select our finalists. Rather than draw out the process any further, however, they went ahead and selected the winners!
They have a number of comments to make when they announce them. But, please be patient, they are going to take a few more days to make sure they’ve got it right. Overall, they were extremely impressed with the quality of the pictures. They understand that in many cases, the portfolios were combined over a period of years. And they respect your effort and craftsmanship.
In the mean time, if you didn’t enter and would like to nominate your own favorite portfolio from these finalists, feel free to do so in the comment section below. Please also share what you liked about it. We’d like to hear from you.
The theme is: “Thy kingdom come.”
Criteria: It should capture a soul, a moment, a place and a ministry.
Prize money
$3000 for first place
$1000 for second
$500 for third
$250 for 4th and 5th
The judges also selected Honorable Mentions
We’ll be mailing out the prize money in about a week!
A Photo School/Mentoring
The judges are discussing how we might help those contestants who are serious about their craft, and especially those who qualified for the Portfolio Round to continue to improve as photographers. They are considering in working with AIM to offer a low cost school of missions photography that would scholarship those of you who have a demonstrated talent and passionf for photography. If you’re interested, please go to Andi Wendel’s blog and email her at this web page.
To see the portfolios that are in the running, go here.
Comments (23)
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Looking forward to the portfolios of these amazing artists! Thank you, photographers, for using your gift For God. Thanks Seth too!
I haven’t browsed the photos yet, but I remember a perfect, “Thy Kingdom Come” picture sent out earlier…
The one where the boy is standing next to a wall and he has written something about Jesus loving the little children. The little evangelist!
Woo hoo! All the photos say the same… Jesus loves! and different photos made me cry (I remember the close up crying boy)..ouch.. powerful photography. ALL of them!
May I vote for those two?
I loved All the photos. I remember the woman standing in the fields (harvesting?) and she is worshipping Our Creator in song. Beautiful!
3 votes?
It has been an absolute honor to be a part of this contest. I cannot tell you how overwhelming it is to see other photographers interested in missions pictures. My dream is to grow in photograph skills so that I may use it to support my efforts on the missions field. This has been the perfect launching point of encouragement and challenge. I thank you so much for that opportunity, and I look forward to see where the photos go from here!
Hi Seth,
I suggest you put the winners who place in the competition into some sort of photo exhibition which might be titled something like: “The Changing Face of Missions” and then go under an AIM banner to schools like Wheaton College, Biola University, Regent University and other institutions where there is history, relationships and influence. Branding, recruitment and an inspiration for a global Gospel ethic would be the goals. Perhaps staff recruitment as well.
After the “dust settles” I would be glad to help frame a strategy and implement it.
Also, David Neff is the Executive Editor of Christianity Today and a friend. There may be some publishing possibilities and I might be able to get some revenue for the participants through a photo catalog (online) various advertising and marketing agencies might use and pay a usage fee for. I have an AIM revenue producing idea there anyway.
Let’s talk.
Hey Seth. Anytime after 2:30 PM.
I have been following the World Race for the last year and have been actively reading the blogs of the women and men whose lives have been wrecked by God as they have been following their hearts and their calling to serve the Lord. In the process, I too have found that my life has been profoundly changed. As a pastor’s wife and mother of 2 young children, my faith has uplifted, my beliefs have been challenged, and I have found myself so incredibly grateful to love the kind of Lord that is moving in the lives of these missionaries.
In looking at all of the portfolios with a soul, a moment, a place and a ministry as the criteria for submission, I was amazed at the amazing work of the Lord that was displayed and captured. There was one portfolio, however, that as I viewed it, moved all of my senses. It brought tears to my eyes, tugged at my heart, gave me chills, and brought me right to the scene of the moment, allowing me to feel as if I was looking through the eyes of the photographer. And that was photographer 129. This photographer has an amazing gift to capture emotion in a way I have never seen before.
Thank you AIM for proving this opportunity to minister to people here at home!
I completely second Jennifer’s comment! This contest has truly been a blessing and I feel honored to have made it even this far. I never would have guessed my passion for photography would land me in this spot and I thank you for the opportunity that you’ve given to me, as well as all the others in this contest. Regardless of the outcome, I know I already feel more than accomplished to have made it to this round. Best of luck to all the contestants and Congratulations to those chosen!
Photographer 129’s photos are absolutely beautiful. Each moment captured in such a unique and moving way. Truly shows the soul while touching it at the same time.
YWAM’s Hawaii base offers classes in photography. I think it’s a brilliant skill to combine with ministry. Looking through a lens can often allow you to “see” in a different way.
I agree with what Christa D said above.
I am struggling how to refer to Portfolio 129 due to the fact that it does not contain just ‘photos’ or ‘picutres’ It’s contents capture moments that words can not express. When you gaze in to the eyes of the crying child or of the little girl entertaining herself with a worn out barbie doll you see more than just sad child. Your heart begins to put the pieces of the stories together and can’t help but respond.
I think that’s what it is about this collection that has caused me to lose my words. Each is a vignette that evokes a response. A response from the heart, the soul, the body, the mind…how can we help not anticipate what the future holds when God’s Kingdom takes it’s place in their lives?
It is a Beautiful Mess.
Photographer 129’s photos are absolutely amazing! As a fellow photographer, I was blown away! True talent is one that can evoke emotion. Looking through her photographs brought tears to my eyes. Her photos show how complex but yet how simple God’s love is for each and everyone of us.
i would like to place my vote for photographer 129 also. Absolutely incredible! Truly captured “Thy kingdom come.”
I would like to say that all the photography was amazing! #129 touched me in ways I cannot even describe. I have been following the world race and have been taking in her images throughout this last year – and have been completely overwhelmed with emotion. God is completely in control of these shots – and you can tell just by the look in their eyes – its apparent that we are seeing his kingdom through her lens!
Photographer 106 is my pick the baptism photo’s show Thy Kingdom Come….to see fresh new faces as they are reborn.
The photos in #106 capture the essence of joy and hope in the midst of poverty. The photo w/ the tracks of the buggy in the village captures the moment and place. Thanks for these photos!
All the photograhers did a great job and it was very hard to choose one but I felt 106 captured the view of Gods Kingdom with those photo’s. To see the photo’s of the people being baptized too me back to when I was and the memory of the love I felt at that time.
I wish I could vote for everyone but if I had to pick just one I will vote for Portfolio # 106 the pictures open your eye’s as you witness people enter into Thy Kingdom from a gypsy village around the world.
Photographer 106’s photos won my vote!! Truly amazing contest and photo’s I wish to thank everyone for sharing.
The one with the women sitting as the men raised her up from the water with a look of peace as water rolls down, I wish I knew what she was thinking, but she had a look that was refreshing and thankfulness……a picture that says The Kingdom Come…..photographer 106.
I grew up in a country where there’s lots of gipsies, but never thought they need Jesus, just as we do..it is good seeing the photos of photographer 106, especially the one with the gipsy woman watching, by the tree, makes my soul rejoice, knowing they are waiting His Kingdom come, and one day we’all will be rejoicing together…there’ll be no needs, no sufferning, only joy and peace…
God bless you and your work, photographer 106.
And…congrats to the other photographers as well, good job!
106 all the way!
I really love photographer # 106 all the photos bring forth Thy Kingdom Come! maybe not the stove photo but all the others.
Awsome-#106, great pics!
I vote for #129! Love all her pix!