Over the years, we have been proud to sponsor many worthy charities including Teenage Cancer Trust, Dallaglio Foundation and Macmillan. In 2017 we increased our commitment to championing future photographers and filmmakers by establishing the JJ Foundation.
AIM? To inspire, support and motivate young photographers and filmmakers in the pursuit of their creative goals and careers.
We’re extremely proud to announce that the winner of the JJ Foundation Photography Competition goes to Robert Spicer, age 17 for his portrait image entitled ‘Men Do Cry’. Congratulations Robert, we look forward to hearing your story at our awards exhibition on the 18th of January!
‘Men Do Cry’
The monochrome image of half a face is entitled “Men Do Cry”. I shot the image on a Canon 1100D and used an ISO of 100, a shutter speed of 1/60 and an aperture of 3.6. I used two softboxes and a hair light with a silver reflector to light the model. The point I was trying to make with the image was that seeing a man cry is shocking and this mostly because society buys into the idea that males must be strong and “manly” – yet this concept is toxic.
Robert Spicer, 17, Portrait Category Winner & Overall 1st Place
Judges comments:
‘The Portrait category received some of the strongest images, but this photograph captured my attention from the moment I saw it. I wanted to know more about the subject – why was he crying? Robert has also demonstrated technical skills in the composition, lighting and depth of field, and the image captures genuine emotion.’
Roberts photograph ‘Men Do Cry’ has been featured in Professional Photo Magazine and as part of the prize, he will be joining us for a free professional studio day and receiving his very own Nikon DSLR to keep.
Chairman and Co-Founder, Johnny Jones comments on the competition ‘As we announce the winners, I would like to thank all of the entrants in our inaugural Photography Competition for Young People 2017. The standard of photography far exceeded our expectations, with imagery submitted from aspiring photographers as young as 13 years of age. We are delighted to award our winners with some exciting opportunities and prizes, and are already making plans for the 2nd JJ Foundation Competition 2018.’
Head to the JJ Foundation page to view the Winners Gallery and to read the stories behind the images from our young photographers themselves.
We’re overwhelmed with the number of entries we received and the quality was exceptional, a HUGE well done to everyone that entered. We’re looking to launch our second Foundation Photography Competition For Young People this year, so if you think you have what it takes to win, keep your eyes peeled for further announcements!
We’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved. A massive thank you to the Judges, Rick Truscott, Rob and Nicky Carter, Nick Turpin and of course Chairman and Co-Founder of JJ Media Group, Johnny Jones. You can read more about the talent board of judges here.
We’d also like to extend a thank you to Eastside Educational Trust.