The back of the library was filled to capacity with creativity and beauty as Pierce College hosted the opening night of the 38th annual Photo Salon on Thursday, May 14.
The winners of the Photo Salon were confirmed Monday night on May 18.
Photographer Brynn Bromley won the award of best in show. Her photograph was a close up of a girl with yellow paint streaking down her face.
There were 47 photographs entered into the competition. The salon started at 6 p.m. and two judges were present to submit their picks for awards.
“The first thing I always look for is what catches my eye,” said Gil Riego Jr., a Pierce alumnus and one of the judges for this year’s competition. “I do a quick glance to see what stands out, and from then on I try to judge on creativity and sharpness depending on the type of photo.”
The award for best photojournalism was given to Mohammad Djauhari, the photo editor for the Roundup. The photograph was captured in Downtown L.A., where a protest after the death of Mike Brown took place.
“I was at the right place at the right time,” Djauhari said. “I see the Photo Salon every year and we have a lot of good photographers here. It’s nice to see my work hanging up next to them.”
Other winners included best landscape, taken by Ernesto Delgado Vides. Second place for that category went to Giovanni De Leon, who captured a star-filled night.
Best creative photo was won by Carolyn Arredondo. Her photo illustration was of a person walking through a mist who appeared to walk on top of telephone lines.
Ellie Kuo is a photographer at Pierce and won first place in the best studio photo category. She said she was pleased at how the nude portraits came out and thought the models expression gave a lot to the photo.
Second place in that category was awarded to Lynn Levitt.
Pierce student Pamela Houghton had two photographs displayed in the salon. One of her photos depicted two women and a young girl gathered around a birthday candle. The adults were showing the child how to blow out the candle.
“One of the reasons I took this photo is because it felt like such a special moment between the three of them,” Houghton said.
Another photography student at Pierce, Ross Leone, explained how his silhouette picture came to be.
“It was spontaneous. It was my first time at the Griffith Observatory and I ended up shooting this photo,” Leone said. “I didn’t use flash. I’m into silhouettes, like having a person in the picture but not necessarily a face all the time. I think when a person is in a photo, it always makes the photo better.”
Many of the photographers who had their work on display had been taking pictures for less than a year. Photography instructor Rita Nisan said you don’t need expensive equipment to be a good photographer.
“I believe what makes a photographer is not a camera. It’s the way you look at something,” Nisan said.
The Photo Salon is scheduled to continue through May 29, and until then more judges will observe the photos and submit their votes.
There were many good photographs to choose from that night, according to Sean McDonald, an instructor in the media arts department. He said he had no idea which ones would win at the time.
“I couldn’t even guess at this point,” McDonald said.
