my All Souls Procession photo contest entries

I entered this year's All Souls Procession Photo Contest and thought I'd share my entries here.  Each entrant could submit up to 4 photos for consideration.  The photos were judged by Mary Virginia Swanson with awards for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place plus honorable mention.  The top 20 photos are going to be hung at Delectables restaurant for a show running October 5th through November 8th.

This year there were 43 photographers entering a total of 161 photos, dare I say some stiff competition with many excellent photographers and images!  I didn't make the top 20, but that's cool, I learned a number of useful things by participating and can't wait to see all the images submitted.  :-)

One of the fun challenges was that the contest was encouraging "outside the box" interpretations of passing, transformation, renewal, and rebirth.  So rather than going for my traditional favorite pictures taken during the All Souls Procession, I found myself digging for more unusual images -- a really good exercise.

I've posted the 4 photos I submitted in order of my personal preference.  My favorite of the set is the image of the woman and child above.

The photo below is from last year's Procession of Little Angels.  Who's carrying who?  Who's watching over who?

This photo is of a woman watching last year's Procession from the sidewalk as the Procession neared the finale grounds.  She's on oxygen and yet dressed up very nicely for the event. 

And finally, this image of two people at the start of last year's procession.  Both with very different face paint and appearances than one traditionally sees at the event.  I like their unusual appearance and how their eyes are fixated in different directions.

I took all of the above pictures last November under "run & gun" circumstances typical at the All Souls Procession -- low light and either I'm in motion or my subject is in motion while I'm trying to capture an image, a lot of one-shot opportunities.  That's one of the fun challenges of photographing moving events.  Another fun thing with the All Souls Procession is that everyone sees something different during it, including photographers.  There are some subjects that it seems everyone gets, and then a handful of unique people or shots that you didn't even see during the evening.

I enjoyed entering the contest and learned a few new tricks by doing so that should serve me well with future photographs.

If you are in the Tucson area and want to see some great images, drop on by Delectables and grab a bite to eat while you're there.  On October 5th from 6pm - 10pm at Delectables on 4th Ave, there will be an opening show of this year's submitted photos (open invitation).  On this night you will not only be able to see the selected 20 prints that will be hung in Delectables, but also a slide show of all 161 entries in this year's contest.  Bound to be some great images and a good time!  Drop on by if you have a chance.

Kathleen Dreier (an excellent Tucson photographer from Esens Photography) did a great job of organizing this year's All Souls Procession Photo contest.

This year's Procession is coming up November 3rd.  Remember, this is far more than just some kind of parade, it is a time of remembrance, reflection, mourning, and celebration.

The All Souls Procession is organized by a non-profit (Many Mouths One Stomach) which depends on the people of our community (you & me) to contribute donations each year to pull it off.  Personally, I feel that the All Souls Procession is not only special to our community, but that it is very healthy for our community as well.  It pulls people from different walks of life together.  It brings young and old together.  It brings people downtown who may not have even realized that we have an increasingly nice downtown.  Healthy.

If you would like to support the All Souls Procession, support the Tucson community, here is information on how you can make your tax-deductable gift.