14th examination result

Masao Torii: Photographer

This year, when the corona wreck changed our daily lives, the jury also celebrated its 14th anniversary.
Due to many restrictions such as the movement of people, I expected that the number of applications this time would be much lower than usual, but the big conference As usual, more works are lined up on the large table in the room.
You can feel the enthusiasm for this contest, and you can see that it is supported by a wide range of generations, from first-time applicants to veterans.

■ Theme 1 "Expressway and landscape section of the four seasons"
Kyoko Ohashi's "Snow Removal on the Expressway" won the "Best Award" in the "Expressway and Four Seasons Landscape Category". A world without colors that freezes. The concrete bridge and the snow removal landscape, which have a presence comparable to the whiteness, are not reflected, but the snow powder falling from the top of the bridge shows that. In a beautiful and stylish composition, you can hear a small snow removal sound sucked into the snow.

<Excellence Award> (Spring) is Toshiyuki Togawa's "Genwaku". Diamond Fuji can only be seen when all conditions are met, including limited seasons, times, places, and weather. Even if you're not a photography enthusiast, it's a landscape you'll want to see and take at least once. Fuji reflected on the surface of the water after the rice planting in front of us, the Expressway that crosses the back, and Diamond Fuji with a beautiful sunset in the background. It has a profound feeling.

<Excellence Award> (Summer) is Mr. Isamu Futabahata's "Hope for Tomorrow". This is a work unique to this contest, and the Tokai-Kanjo Expwy is under construction under the blue sky in midsummer. The way the colors are organized is also skillful, and the expression is straightforward and powerful.

<Excellence Award> (Autumn) is Mr. Toshitaka Koike's "Return Road". The Toyota Arrows Bridge rises powerfully against the backdrop of the magnificent gradation of the sky. It is very effective, such as the setting sun shining on the wire connecting the piers, and it is a beautiful work that you can fully enjoy the charm of landscape photography. I'm very lucky if I happened to meet the "On the Way Home" in the title.

<Excellence Award> (Winter) is Katsuya Suzuki's "At the dawn of opening". Mt. Fuji dyed in madder red in the light of the sunrise. The moon is on its head. It doesn't shine as bright as the sun, so it seems to be called Pearl Fuji. It is rare for the full moon to appear at the summit of Mt. Fuji in the early morning hours. If the silhouette on the road, including the telephoto lens effect, is a construction vehicle and the people involved in it, the world may have expanded further.

In addition, 4 honorable mentions and 4 winning entries were selected from a large number of works, and the one that caught the eye was
<Honorable Mention> Kenta Koizumi's "Autumn of Harvest". It was taken with a drone that couldn't reach the ground. As soon as I realized that the perspective from the bird's-eye view was graphical and interesting, and the shooting technique had entered a new era.

<Honorable Mention> Fumito Miyazawa's "Labyrinth and Minicar in the Air". Under the night interchange that intersects intricately, the minicar is placed in an exquisite position, and the wide lens is used to express it as if a real car exists. The idea as a landscape photograph is excellent.

<Honorable Mention> Mr. Toshinari Suzuki's "Bridge to the Future". A work that captures a rare bridge on the verge of connection, which is unique to this contest, under the stars in the sky. Maybe it would have been nice to emphasize the trajectory of the stars with a slightly darker tone.

<Honorable Mention> Yuji Ueno's "Sunset" and <Winning> Masamitsu Kataoka 's "Standing in the Asagiri". I feel the power of veterans in how to capture light.

<Winning> Toru Sotoguchi's "Mirror on the Highway". If you encounter such a scene while driving, the scenery reflected in the mirror changes every moment and it is interesting.

<Winning> Koichi Nakata's "Going through the spectacular autumn leaves". It's a wonderful and magnificent situation, and you'll be amazed at it.

<Winning> Naoya Mihara's "The Road to Illuminate Mt. Fuji". It is a work at the shooting point where the ancestors produced many masterpiece photographs, but in the dark tone, the trajectory of the headlights was expressed with overexposure that seems to be a failure, so the whole road looks like a lighting device and is attractive It is a typical work. Shooting at famous points will be difficult to surpass our predecessors unless you take the plunge.

■About Theme 2 "Your Favorite Landscape Category"
The winner of the Grand Prize in the "Your Favorite Landscape" category was Yamaguchi Hiroshi's "Fire Fishing." Autumn ayu fishing was conceived as part of a tourism initiative on YOSHIDA, which flows through Gujo Gujo-shi Gifu Prefecture. Although it has a short history, the photograph depicts the sight of fishermen carrying torches in the darkness as they go downstream from upstream to chase the ayu. By making full use of time exposure, the artist has captured the trails of light, creating a fantastical world with the light reflected on the water's surface.

The Excellence Award (Spring) went to Nakazawa Rikio's "Shining in the Morning Sun." A row of cherry blossom trees in full bloom bathed in the soft early morning sun. Just as the title suggests, they are shining. The colors of the water surface, the sky, and the whole piece are beautifully unified in pale pastel colors. It's as if you're looking at a single painting.

The Excellence Award (Summer) went to Toshiro Takahashi's "Floating Flowers." It's an impactful piece. The lotus flowers, bathed in powerful light against a pitch-black background, and the dead tree poking out from the mass of floating lotus leaves are also skillfully framed using a medium telephoto lens.

The Excellence Award (Autumn) went to Naoto Fukuda's "First Frost at Yashima Marsh." Yashima Marsh is also famous as a trekking course. The first frost in the early morning makes you feel that winter is approaching. It's not flashy, but for some reason it's captivating.

The Excellence Award (Winter) went to Kato Takeshi's "A World of White and Blue." It is a dignified, frozen scene. Emerald-colored water in a snow-covered mountain valley. Only the waves caused by the towing of a pleasure boat move quietly. By placing icicles in the foreground, the harsh coldness is conveyed even more realistically.

Perhaps by coincidence, the top five works all involved water, which was an interesting result.
In addition, four honorable mentions, four selected works, and one new special award were selected.

<Special Award> Tokai Junior High School (12 students from the Department of Information Science)
Twelve members of a junior high school club (Information Science Club) submitted photographs. While the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented club activities from continuing as usual, the members participated individually as part of the club, capturing everyday scenes from their own perspectives on campus. The photos are unpretentious and unspectacular, but there's something refreshing about collecting all 12 works. We look forward to seeing more people take part in this new initiative.

<Honorable Mention> "Spring Scene" by Takeo Oshima. The Great Buddha of Jurakuen looks down on cherry blossoms from above. The bold composition is very interesting. If the cherry blossoms had been about 80% in bloom, the impression might have been a little different.

Honorable Mention: "Passing Through the Chinowa" by Tsunoda Tsuneo. A snapshot taken at the Chinowa grove at Taga Taisha Shrine. The photo perfectly captures the heartwarming, joyful atmosphere of a family.

Honorable Mention: "Towards the Light" by Chayama Masako. In the distance, against a pitch-black sky rendered in ultramarine blue, is the night view of an oil refinery. The Inaba Port Line runs along the river, with beautiful curves. The illuminated water below is bathed in a colorful mix of lights, creating a fascinating world.

Honorable Mention: "Great Bell Tower" by Hoshino Ikuo. This work stood out among the many other submitted works. Perhaps it was photographed under mercury lamps, or rather electric light, but the powerful shape of the branches that completely cover the screen and the monotone finish that completely obscures the color of the subject itself are excellent.

<Selected Work> "Dancing Flowers" by Takeshi Kodama. A weeping plum tree sits atop a plump, bowl-shaped tree. The silhouette of the trunk looks like it's dancing, just like the title suggests, which is quite charming. I'm sure the dancing pose changes depending on the wind direction.

<Selected Work> "Sailing" by Nakamura Akio. It appears to be a windsurfing race, but the telephoto lens effect compresses the perspective, creating a very dense image. The shape of the sails and the silhouettes of the people make it seem as if a swarm of butterflies has been drawn to "sweet nectar."

<Selected Work> "Coloring the Night Sky" by Chieko Idota. While fireworks are often photographed using sophisticated techniques, this work caught my eye for its very simple feel. It is like a painting, or looking at embroidery on fabric. It is not flashy, but I am drawn to its nostalgic, fairy-tale-like feel.

<Selected Work> "Flame" by Hayashi Takumi. This work captures the memorial service at Daruma Kannon Dairyuji Temple in Gifu City. I was astonished by its sheer power. The thoughts of the people over the past year are sublimated into the flames. There is something frightening about the way the eyes of the burning Daruma doll stare straight at the camera. It is truly a stunning photograph.

I am grateful that this contest has given me the opportunity to learn about old traditional events and discover places I have never been to before.

Masao Torii

Kayo Aoyama: Free Announcer

Central Nippon Expressway Photo Contest 2021 Commentary

As the days when I couldn't go out continued and the desire to meet beautiful scenery quickly increased, I was surprised to see the many works lined up on the desk on the day of the judging. Mt. Fuji, which captures the light beautifully and expects hope for the future, the light reflected on the cable-stayed bridge on the Expressway, the flowers that emerge, the judging venue this time was like a pageant of light.
At this time of the year, I decided to select a work that would expand my dreams and expand my expectations in the future.

For many years, the "Expressway and Landscape Division of the Four Seasons" has been fascinated by the power of showing off the technological capabilities under construction, especially the complex structure of the interchange itself, which has a beautiful design. However, in the submitted work, the combination of lighting, moonlight, and starlight creates a truly mysterious landscape.
This year's best work is a magnificent white landscape of snow, but it is strange that the outline is clearly shown by the subtle shade of light.
Here are some tips for the future. I think everyone has similar places to shoot Expressway. I think it's difficult because the movement to various places is limited now, but if the corona calms down a little, please take the Tokai-Hokuriku Expwy and go to the Hokuriku area! !!

In the "Your Special Landscape Division", it is always difficult to choose the theme as you like. Until now, I was wondering how to evaluate digitally processed and modified photographs and how much to evaluate them, but as the years went by, they were Standard, pure photographs and modified works. Are now evaluated in parallel. This year's new angle is from directly above. Looking at the Expressway and patchwork from directly above, it becomes a mysterious landscape. The method of drone seems to be a natural method. Needless to say, I would like everyone to not be offended by the comments, but please take good pictures so as not to bother the flight permit and everyone around you.

And the first topic this time is probably that everyone from the Faculty of Information Science of Tokai Junior High School applied as part of the activities of the club activities. There was a lot of variety in the perspectives of various landscapes, and all the works convey the thoughts of each person who took the picture. This time, we decided to win a prize as a group, but next time we would like you to take on the challenge again as an application for each item.
However, in fact, in another photo contest, all the students in the photography club of a certain school applied with all their might. It was really unbearable to choose individually from them, and we who chose it were troublesome. However, it doesn't matter, and I hope that next time we will try to make good works as we wish and bother us the judges.

About winning works and calendar
A wonderful work will be a calendar that decorates the year of the Central Nippon Expressway. Excellent works are not always posted on the calendar. What is good as a work is different from what is suitable for being posted on a calendar. First of all, portrait works are not suitable for calendars.
Then, while considering the variations of the pages of the four seasons, we will select the appropriate works. Moreover, since the number of sheets is limited, I always have to worry about narrowing down.

Although there are concerns about the sixth wave of corona infection, the situation is gradually calming down and returning to daily life. You are looking forward to more opportunities to go to shoot. Not only popular shooting spots, but also to avoid crowds, why not find your own special shooting spot. Also, the scenery may have changed because the number of people visiting the shooting location a few years ago has decreased due to this corona disaster. I think it would be a good gratitude to visit the shooting location of your memories again and take a new work.
I sincerely hope that the next year will be a wonderful year, we will spin the moon, and it will be a bright year for everyone.