Samuel Bradley

I am a photographer on the verge of graduating. Currently interning at www.mackbooks.co.uk.

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  So something pretty major happened to me just over a month ago which I think I’m now allowed to post online. I told a lot of people on facebook a while back but I was asked to refrain from posting about it on my blog or website.

  A panel of judges voted me Practical Photography magazine’s Photographer of The Year 2010. I entered the competition (somewhat by accident) earlier on in the year. It’s an old photo (above) that I took when I started uni in 2009.

   So anyway, I won the portrait category of the competition which ran over six months. That got me a £500 Jessops voucher and a Nikon D300s. I sold the Nikon (duh) and put the money together with the voucher to buy a 5d MK II. If people wondered how I managed to afford a £1700 camera body, that’s how.

   Then, five months later, I wake up next to my girlfriend and my phone is flashing. I check my email and there’s one from Practical Photography Magazine. I’m really groggy and tired, possibly hungover a little too but after a few re reads, I just go still and say ‘fuck I’ve won.’

    Basically at the end of the competition, all the categories are judged together (portrait, landscape, travel, bandw etc) and they pick a winner, which in this case was me. I’ve got myself £2000 to spend on lenses and an £8000 North African discovery cruise which leaves in March next year. Crazy stuff.

  It’s totally cool to hate me, I would definitely hate me. I kind of do hate me actually. I really didn’t do anything to win this other than carry on doing what I do which is taking photos and posting them on the internet. So yeah If I could give people one piece of advice I’ve got from this experience, it would be to rinse flickr, tumblr, facebook, myspace and any other place that lets you upload your photos because you might just accidentally get a whole load of free stuff.

   Here’s a scan of some bits of the article. It’s a five page spread of my photos which is awesome, although one has been cropped big time, not so awesome. Also there’s some nice paraphrasing from an interview I did.

  

  Also credit to Brad, the guy who’s face got me all the glory http://bradcomer.tumblr.com/

  5 Nov 2010 / 72 notes