West Hartford Resident Receives 'Photographer of the Year' Honors

Patty Swanson, of Patty Swanson Photography, was honored last week as photographer of the year for 2012 in two categories by the Connecticut Professional Photographers' Association (CTPPA) at the organization's 64th annual convention.

"I was just blown away, and to get it in two categories is just awesome," said Swanson, who has operated her own studio of the basement of her West Hartford home for more than a decade.

Heading into the state convention's print competition, Swanson knew that she had the most number of points in the "creative photographer" and "art/electronic imaging" categories based on quarterly competitions, but judging at the state level is much stricter, she said. When the trophies were handed out, Swanson was thrilled.

She shares "Photographer of the Year" honors in the creative category with another West Hartford photographer, Paulette Mertes of Paulette Mertes Studios, but is the sole winner in the art/electronic imaging category.

Swanson spent countless hours preparing her images for the competition.  "Nothing ever is really 'out of the camera' anymore because of digital [technology]. If you put anything into a print competition with imperfections, the judges take off for it," she said.

The time spent working on entries in the art/electronic imaging category is particularly important, and a key element in the judging process. "The art/electronic imaging is taking a photograph so it doesn't even really look like a photograph," she said.

At the state level, her print entitled "Obeying the Speed Limit" earned an "Award of Expert" blue ribbon, and second place in the art/electronics category. The competition requires the image to be printed on a canvas that measures 16" by 20", but the image on the inside can be any size, and fit anywhere within that area, she said.

"Obeying the Speed Limit" was taken at a regatta in Worcester, MA, last fall, and although they aren't recognizable in the end product, there are several West Hartford boys in the green shirts rowing for the Riverfront Recapture team. "The colors are really 'blah' in the original image," Swanson said.

Her other entry in the art/electronics category is appropriately named "Beetle Juice." (The title matters, too.) Although the colors appear vibrant, Swanson said it was actually starting to rain. She shot the image in HDR format, and printed it on metallic paper, adding to the "shiny sparkle" of the end product.

Swanson said prints are judged on 12 different elements: impact, technical excellence, creativity, style, composition, presentation, color balance, center of interest, lighting, subject matter, technique, and storytelling.

Swanson has already selected "Beetle Juice" and another award-winning image, "There's No Place Like Home," for a gallery show she will have at the Noah Webster House in West Hartford this fall, timed to coincide with Halloween and Noah Webster House’s West Hartford Hauntings. "There's No Place Like Home" also looks very different from the original, which was shot in color.

Swanson works mostly as a portrait photographer, "But I like to do the fine art, too. I think it helps your portrait photography," she said. "I love getting people walking away from the camera, walking on the beach, walking in the woods."

She also enjoys photo shoots for high school seniors looking for something more than the standard senior portrait. She does the shoots in the students' own environment, doing what they love, so they are relaxed. "They can even bring friends," she said.

She also works in photojournalism and product photography, is skilled at digital retouching, “Estilo de Pintor” (renditions of photographs that appear hand-painted), and designs one-of-a-kind photographic greeting cards and promotional material for small businesses. She also donates her time to many local non-profits and charitable organizations such as the March of Dimes and DCF's Heart Gallery.

'[Winning the award] gives me huge credibility not only in the photography industry among my peers but maybe even more importantly it gives credence to my photography among my potential clients as well as my existing ones. There are a lot of 'wannabe' photographers out there who think just because they have a digital SLR that they can call themselves a professional photographer," Swanson said. Being recognized in this way, by others who understand light, composition, and the other elements on which images are judged, is of incredible value, she said.

Swanson is a Certified Professional Photographer, a designation held by only three percent of photographers worldwide. She has also been recognized with two Judge’s Awards, the People’s Choice Award, and other numerous Blue Ribbons. For more information, visit her website www.pattyswanson.com or find her on Facebook.