Monthly Masters Discussion ⇒ Monthly Masters' Discussion - January 2021- Kelvin Luen's "Magical Night"

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Introduction
This month we will look at a young master's award winning work. Recently 24 year old Kelvin Luen was named the winner of International Landscape Photographer of the Year award for 2020. Professional and amateur photographers from around the world were invited to enter folios for the competition and a chance to share in the prize pool. ILPOTY is one of the most lucrative and prestigious contests among landscape photographers. From over 3800 entries, Luen was selected.

Luen started taking photos at 18 when he borrowed his cousin's camera for a hiking trip. He soon fell in love with nature, and has been capturing landscape photos for the last six years. He became a full-time pro after graduating college in 2018. He says, "The International Landscape Photographer of the Year award has been my only focus for the past four years. I’ve studied the past winners’ works and I believe ILPOTY presents the highest standard of landscape photography in the world.” 

Study this image from Tromso, Norway and share your opinion about it. Below are some links to more information and some questions that may spur your thinking. Answer any that appeal to you, or just share your thoughts.

Questions:
1. What do you think of the composition? The subject matter? Would you want this on your wall? Why or why not?
2. It would appear that editing plays a significant role in this image. How do you think he achieved this look? Does it appeal to you visually? Do you think it is too much? Not enough?
3. What do you think of the color palette? Is it realistic or not? Does it matter? Does it appeal to you?
4. Follow the first link below to review the ILPOTY online flip book with the other images in Yuen’s winning folio and the images of other top award winners in the contest. Do you agree with the judges’ decision? Is there another photographer entrant whose folio holds more appeal for you? Explain?
5. If you have a favorite landscape photo of your own from 2020, you’re invited to share it here for others of us to enjoy, especially those of us who live in unphotogenic locations and did not have a chance to travel in 2020.

Links For More Info
https://www.internationallandscapephotographer.com/
https://500px.com/photo/1024951416/land ... elvin-yuen
https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2020/ ... ar/617138/
https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/news ... ape-images
https://www.scmp.com/photos/3111756/hon ... -works-art
https://qz.com/586156/this-teenage-phot ... st-cities/
https://www.thecrankycamera.com/blog/in ... 020-awards