Recently, two photography friends visited the Fstoppers studio on the same day. Of course, this means I need to plan a friendly photography contest to see one and forever Who is the best photographer on earth! This challenge video comes with a lot of twists and turns, but at its core, we ask: “Can an iPhone beat an expensive $12,000 mid-format mirrorless camera?” Today, let’s find out.
Besides running around the world in my crazy moon shoesone of my favorite leisure activities is fighting with Lee Morris Pye Jirsa in a photo contest. If you haven’t seen them go toe-to-toe in San Juan, Puerto Rico, I highly recommend watching this photographer challenge video just before the pandemic.
Recently, however, Architectural photographer Mike Kelley was on the east coast shooting some TV production, and he had a chance to drive through Charleston. It’s quite rare that we’re all out of the country let alone all in one city, so instead of hanging out and enjoying each other’s company, I thought a battle to the death would be interesting. than. We’ve set up challenge videos with all sorts of rules in the past, but for this video I wanted to keep people in the dark for as long as possible so we could get their reactions in front of the camera.
Rules
Basically for this photography challenge, I wanted Mike, Lee, and Pye to shoot the same subject. Since this time of year it’s pretty cold outside, I know a challenge in the studio, where a warm place would be the best bet. For diversity, I partnered with a local friend and model Dana Robinsonand together we came up with the concept of having three different wardrobes. As you can see in the video above, the wardrobe options have some photographers on edge a bit, but it’s also great entertainment.
Once the wardrobe is in place, the second twist is the equipment each photographer will have to use to complete their work. Since our studio is full of some Flashing Profoto and various LED constant light, that will be two lighting options. One lucky photographer will be able to use any lighting they want, including the beautiful natural light we now have in our newly renovated studio space.
With the wardrobe and lighting tools defined, I wanted photographers to draw who would go first. Just as delaying possession in the second half of a football game has its advantages, so finishing last in a competition like this can give the photographer a big chance because you know results of its competitors.
The final rules are quite simple. Each photographer has 30 minutes to complete their unique work, and besides the lighting equipment assigned to them, they can use any camera system, equipment, props, backdrops or What area of the studio do they want to build their masterpiece on. Of course, defamation and vandalism are also highly encouraged.
Result
Having participated in similar photo contests myself, I know that it is very rare to get a final photo that really excels under the circumstances. However, these competitions are like surviving a wild and hungry bear with a few friends; you just need to be faster than the slowest in the group to not be destroyed. Who can deal with the high stress and luck (or bad luck) of painting a photo wardrobe the most? See what three photographers have come up with.
Note: These submissions are in the order of previous online voting posts and not the order taken in the video.
Submission No. 1
Submission No. 2
Submission #3
The second challenge arose
After all the pictures were taken and posted on various social media platforms to see who was the winner, a second contest became apparent. The two photographers took two different pictures of the same wardrobe and setting but with completely different cameras. One of the images below was taken on a 12,000 USD Fujifilm GFX100 setup, while the other was shot on an iPhone Pro 13.
Is one of the images below better than the other? Can a significantly cheaper camera produce the same image quality as a camera that costs the same as a cheap car?
Camera one
Camera two
Although the results are revealed in the video above, the number of votes is less than 20 people. We would love to hear from you. Which image above is the best, and between the two camera images, which one looks best here on the Fstoppers website?
