Eleven photographers from Auvergne, Rhône-Alpes, Burgundy and Île-de-France participated in the 20th edition of Freshwater Shots, on September 23 and 24 on Lake Annecy. The competition – of which Dive In! was a partner, offering digital subscriptions to the participants – was hosted by the La Coulée Douce club in Sévrier. Equipped with their cameras (DSLR or compact in a waterproof case or waterproof compact by design), the competitors dived in for two ninety-minute rounds, at the Palace Menthon in the morning and at Chavoire in the afternoon.
At the end of the day, the photographers again had ninety minutes to select five images each from the maximum one hundred and fifty taken during the two rounds. Among these, three unedited photos competed for the French animal trophy, which consists of seven stages.
During the evening, a selection of images from previous years, edited by Yves Kapfer, was projected. Vincent Maran then gave a talk on “The Sea Cleaners,” adding some salt to the freshwater of the day. The evening concluded with the screening of Rémi Masson’s latest film What Lies Beneath the Surface, shot entirely in the Rhône-Alpes region, showcasing the various freshwater species of our lakes and rivers: beaver, toads, frogs, pike-perch, hotu, whitefish spawn, giant lake trout…
On Sunday morning, the jury convened to review the images in competition and deliberate, while the competitors enjoyed the opportunities offered by Lake Annecy. Early in the afternoon, the jury announced the results and awarded the many prizes to the photographers. The date is already set for the next edition in September 2018.
Results of the 20th edition of the Freshwater Shots:
1st – Didier Capderou, awards: Animal, Macro, Ambiance, Haut-Savoyard, General (1st in the French animal trophy)
2nd – Gilles Duclos, jury’s favorite (2nd in the ranking of the French animal trophy)
3rd – Christophe Muzyk, 20th anniversary award (5th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)
4th – Nathalie Tretout (3rd in the ranking of the French animal trophy)5th – Fabienne Charles (8th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)6th – Vincent Quillasi, Hymn to Life award (10th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)
7th – Didier Faverdin (6th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)8th – Yann Bereziat (7th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)9th – Patrick Beudin (6th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)10th – Agnès Gaget (9th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)11th – Jean-Luc Fyot, beginner’s award (11th in the ranking of the French animal trophy)