There are aliens among us?

There are aliens among us…

When I joined various model-photographer websites, I decided to use my real name, as a matter of integrity – models could check that I existed in the ‘phone directory, and I wouldn’t just be a bloke who says he lives in Barnsley called Phil. But when I joined Ephotozine, I was much less sure of my ground, and everyone else seemed to be using nicknames, so I did the same.

At work, I was used to straightforward email addresses – the common format in local government was [email protected], but most private emails were shorter, and used some form of nickname. I had done the same with my first email address, and carried that into this website. Lots of other people have done the same, and it causes some confusion. Maybe it’s because people of my sort of age got email addresses before we learned to type terribly fast, and the appeal of [email protected] was considerable! (That lovely address ceased to exist when the BBC, in the interests of competition, was forced to stop providing an email service… I never understood that.)

Anyway, this tendency means that we don’t always recognise the quality of the photographers among us, because someone we know here as Fredthebrickie, for instance, may regularly win prizes under his real name, which none of us know. However, the subject comes up because one of the few among EPZ members who use their real name on the site has come fourth in the Amateur Photographer annual competition.

Let’s put this in perspective: it’s a competition that runs over several months, with specified topics each month. To win, you need to submit consistently excellent images in several different genres. You also need to recognise that there are some very energetic and focussed people in the mix, determined to make a reputation for themselves. And some of them are VERY good indeed. The competition is now run online, and while readers of the paper edition get one free entry in each round, anyone can buy additional entries. It’s therefore easier to win if you are either a superb editor of your own work, or can afford to send ten of your best images, as some winners clearly do. As I recall, I’ve once got an image into the top twenty – so Angie Wallace’s high overall placing and an outright win in one round is quite remarkably good work.
By chance, a couple of rounds ago, I recognised one of Stevetheroofer’s images in the competition… Ron Tear (another of the few using his own name) has won a lot of different things over the years, including a special award in this year’s Landscape Photographer of the Year contest, and he and John Tisbury have scored in a now-defunct erotic photography event. Quietly working away up north, hwatt conceals a photographer of stunning ability in his chosen genre, Scottish landscapes.

So let’s celebrate the diverse talents of our fellow-members, whether we know them or not – and also wish them well for 2021. In this company, best that I don’t post any pictures…