Andrea Topalian of Moments by Andrea Photography in Wilton will be receiving the Platinum Photographer of the Year Award from the Professional Photographer’s of America’s 2015 International Photographic Competition. She earned this prestigious honor when three of her four photos entered in the competition were accepted into the Loan Collection and one photo into the General Collection.
A panel of 43 eminent jurors from across the United States selected the top photographs from more than 5,000 total submitted entries at Gwinnett Technical College in Georgia. Judged against a standard of excellence, only about 20-percent of the images were selected for the General Collection and the esteemed Loan Collection. The Loan Collection images⎯the best of the best⎯will all be published in the much-anticipated Loan Collection book.
“It’s an honor when one image is accepted, much less all four with three at the highest level! I’m thrilled that my hard work paid off but even if I hadn’t won, I would still compete again. It’s a challenging but very worthwhile experience. I learn so much each time! I’m always working hard to bring my photography to the next level and the competition work does that for me. Also, the competition wins are getting me closer to earning my Master Photographer Degree from PPA, which I could earn next year.”
Topalian’s work will exhibited Jan. 10-12, 2016 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, GA, where she will receive the award at the annual award ceremony. This International Photographic Exhibition is held in conjunction with Imaging USA, an annual convention and expo for professional photographers and several photographic associations.
Topalian’s photographs⎯titled “Picasso’s Protege,” “Evening Rehearsal for Summer Stage,” “Middle Child Syndrome” and “Summer Dreams”⎯will be in the International Photographic Exhibition alongside other top photographic works from the competition and traveling on special invitational displays. These images constitute one of the world’s largest annual exhibits of professional photography gathered simultaneously under one roof.
Topalian is contributing photographer for GOOD Morning Wilton.