EISA PHOTOGRAPHY MAESTRO 2023-24

EISA's Maestro's international photography contest results are out for 2023-24. These awards recognise photography talents from across the globe. This year's theme was 'The Animal Kingdom', and it saw enthusiastic participation from India. Magnus Berggren from Sweden won the first prize of € 1500. Congratulations to all the winners.

1st MAGNUS BERGGREN (SWEDEN)

Magnus Berggren started photographing in 2007, but it was not until 2018 that he decided to focus on wildlife photography. “I started photographing small birds and just got hooked,” he says. “But I also like to photograph other animals, of course.”

His image style is distinctive and dramatic. “I try to plan how the background looks as I try to get the animal separated from the background. I want to try to show the beauty of the animal by editing the photos a bit dramatically and bring out their soul in the photos,” he explains. “I’ve been developing my style for a few years and it’s still evolving.”

Magnus uses a Sony Alpha A7 IV with a Sony 400mm F2.8 lens, but he hopes to upgrade to a Sony 600mm F4 soon. “It would be better suited to smaller birds,” he says. He edits his photos on a PC with Lightroom Classic and Topaz Sharpen.

2ND ANGI WALLACE (U.K.)

I am an ex-nurse turned multi award-winning photographer with a passion for close up and macro, nature, still life, creative portraiture, landscapes and gig photography”, Angi Wallace says. Over 18 years of enjoying photography, she has relished learning various genres, concentrating initially on capturing images of amphibians and reptiles (another hobby of hers).

More recently she have been focusing on floral, fungi and other close up nature images as well as honing her skills in still life, focus stacking macro and food photography.