Canon Photomarathon SG

[davidc]

Yesterday I attended the Canon photomarathon here in Singapore. In a nutshell it's an event running from 7am to 8pm with the main goal being shooting three images, each to a different theme, to stand a chance of winning prizes.

I didn't win anything but it was certainly an interesting and exhausting day! My fitbit exercise tracker logged over 35,000 steps and over 28km walked!

Here's my short write-up of the event - Canon are sending me the winning images so I can give my own thoughts on them.

http://davidcandlish.photography/news/2 ... apore-2015

[Mike Farley]

Thanks, Dave, for a fascinating report of an event from the oter side of the world. That backpack of yours must have weighed a ton. It might have been like an SAS endurance test, but think what lugging it about all day must have done for your fitness levels.

I definitely agree on your thoughts about producing images in the printed form. While not every shot might have resulted in a print even in the days of film, the proportion of those which did make it was much higher and we have lost something in our pursuit of digital.

Does the 5Ds have built in Raw processing? Presumably the organisers were looking for JPEGs, so its use if allowed would permit some limited adjustments post capture.

Did I miss the 50 cent shot you referenced?

I also spotted a very minor typo - "thgeme" in the section about the third set subject.

With so many people and the result dependent on good fortune to some extent, especially given the themes announced on the day, it is definitely an occasion where the enjoyment is to be had in the participation. I look forward to seeing the winning shots.

[davidc]

Heh there was a lot of unnecessary kit I opted not to use a backpack and instead chose a sling-bag for convenience. In itself that was manageable and you don't feel the weight. The problem was two cameras and a tripod - that was more unwieldy than anything else. Luckily my wife dropped into town so I arranged to meet her and sacrificed the tripod and my 6D, opting to shoot the rest of the day on the 5DS. I could have ditched some of the lenses too but at the time getting rid of the tripod was the priority. A collapsable carbon fibre tripod is definitely on the shopping list Otherwise, even with the colossal 11-24, after losing the tripod it was MUCH more comfortable!

The 50 cent shot is missing, I'll upload it soon along with the winning images for discussion.

[davidc]

I have now posted the winners

http://davidcandlish.photography/news/2 ... ing-images

[Mike Farley]

I have now posted the winners

http://davidcandlish.photography/news/2 ... ing-images

Some good work there. I note that the two overall winners both qualified with shots taken in the two less popular themes.

[davidc]

I thought some were good and many were very average. Generally I thought the students were a lot better!

[Mike Farley]

I thought some were good and many were very average. Generally I thought the students were a lot better!

I would not disagree with that assessment. My original comment was, perhaps, ambiguous in that I did not imply any criticism of the images I did not especially like.

With 3,000 or so photographers each taking who knows how many shots during the day, there should be some worthwhile pictures there purely on the law of averages. That there are not more only proves just how challenging our hobby can be. It makes me think of people like Harry Callaghan who went out most days and reckoned to get just half a dozen worthwile images per year.

[Paul Heester]

Interesting article and I like the fact that Canon put alot of resources into the event. It reminds me of the Samsung-sponsored Photo 24 event we attended a few years back but much improved.

[davidc]

Yes I know what you mean - I approached Canon and offered to run an Asia-equivalent of Photo 24 then they pointed me to this. Now in its 13th year... surprises me Canon doesn't do it in the UK.

[Mike Farley]

... surprises me Canon doesn't do it in the UK.

It's probably more manageable within the confines of Singapore. I can see the logistics overwhelming Canon in the UK with several regional events possibly being necessary to accommodate everyone who wanted to attend. There's a lot of sensitivity about the North-South divide and Canon would not want to deter potential customers. I can quite see the investment failing to provide a useful return and even being counter productive if not properly managed. For a few years, they did do a free weekday show in London which was mainly intended for professionals and must have been expensive to put on, but that has long been dropped. The last year when I went, it was obvious that a number of attendees were retired amateurs and not making any attempt to hide it.