A Solihull College & University Centre student has been crowned ‘Young Bug Photographer of the Year 2020’ by the Luminar Bug Photography Awards.
Jamie Spensley, 17 from Solihull, entered his insect photos into the competition during the summer and recently found out he had won the Young Bug Photographer title with his photograph of a cader bee.
The awards attracted variety and quality from around the world with 800 photographers submitting their work. The awards not only showcase the best invertebrate photography but they also raise vital funds for conservation trust Buglife.
Jamie is passionate about shooting in the macro photography style. He explains the technicalities behind creating his competition winning shot: “I shot the picture handheld so focus stacking was a nightmare. I couldn’t do it automatically, so I had to mask out all of the out-of-focus areas in each of the forty-one images I used. I was very happy with the result.”
Jamie has just started his second year at the College and has really enjoyed his course so far. He is hoping to go on to study filmmaking or photography further in the future.
The achievement of winning the competition is not lost on Jamie. He comments: “It feels amazing to have won. The judges are professionals and knowing that they thought my work was worthy of winning is an overwhelming sensation. Having won this shortly after being shortlisted into the photography show gallery has cheered up my 2020.”
Jamie capped his win off by appearing on ITV Central News recently to discuss the competition.
Find out more about the College’s Media and Photography courses.
