Money Shot April Winners
Who goes on to the finals?
Words by Cam McRae.
AS is often the case we find ourselves in a tricky spot over Money Shot. Our finals this year will be decided by a gallery of five photos but we may have a one hit wonder squeaking through. Maybe it's something we'll have to deal with and maybe not but it's certainly keeping things interesting for us. For now have a look at what our esteemed panel of judges (a bit of a ragtag crew really but they approach the task with vigour!) has decided and who they have chosen to promote to the finals. The two who make it through will receive another prize from Syncros - an FR 32 Wheelset for the winner and a Carbon Chain Device for the Runner up. Below you'll find our weekly winners from April, weeks 5-8, along with comments and a ranking from our panel. Once you are done perusing let us know what you think. Thanks for tuning in and now it's time to get stoked for the finals which will be flushed out once we have this 'issue' flushed out. We'll start with the week 5 winner and move toward week 8.
Week 5 winner chosen by Stephen Wilde.
Jay Sinclair - Photographer. Rank of week 5 photo - 3
This image doesn't do much for me. That's what's great about photography, one persons throw away is another's masterpiece. Sami Makki's photo has a ton of saturation and color to it and I can see why Stephen chose it as a winner. (Stephen is known for his cross processing and saturation)That being said it's not my cup of tea. I like that it comes all the way from india and that guys are not only shooting but shredding over there. The composition of this one bugged me with the rider center punched and his head cut off. I do like the colors, just not enough to get over the
rest.
Johnny Smoke - North Shore Legend and boss man of Bush Pilot Biking - rank 4
There's good action, great colour (maybe pushed a bit far) but the composition just isn't there. With all the tweaks this image got (contrast, saturation, sharpening, etc.....) it would have been better to have cropped it or something. There's just nothing going on in the whole left side of the frame.
Trevor Hansen - nsmb team Cap'n - rank 3
I love the fact that this shot comes from such a big country that rarely gets mountain bike coverage. The rich blue sky, rusty dirt and balled up tree tops make the scenery stand out. I also liked the drifting motion of the rider tight to the camerman's location.
Jerry Willows - nsmb team rider - rank 3
I'll keep it short and sweet, I love drift shots especially with dust and rock flying in the background as it gives a sense of motion to the photo. The subject is dead center with part of the helmet cut off so it lost some points with me based on that.
Pete Roggeman - nsmb staff - rank 4
Sami Makki. Say what you want technically about this photo, but I just cannot ignore the stoke factor of it. That is a roaring drift and it's a smokin' shot. It couldn't be a winner for me because of the mild decapitation and the Ent growing out of the tire like an exclamation mark in "But this is in India!" (Stephen Wilde was right about that '!'). We knew there were riders in India but this photo shows that there are riders in India.
Week 5 winner. That's right - India- Photographer: Sami Makki || Rider: VinayKumar Menon
Week Six Winner Chosen by Ian Hylands
Jay Sinclair - rank 2
It was a tough choice between Devan's shot and Jan's shot for me. Apparently I share the same thoughts as Ian and Jan on what makes a good photo. (I'm in good company.) Jan's shot is the classic magazine shot with good light balance between ambient and the Flash. I like that the rider pops from the frame and his positioning. The rider is riding strong and the images shows great movement with the dust and the drift. This is a super shot, but sometimes shooters get lucky with an original image and that's what beat Jan here for me.
Johnny Smoke - rank 1
This is far from Jan's best shot, and I'm not a big race fan or anything, but this shot has it all. Even in low light, this one is nailed. Great colour, crisp action, awesome composition, and some fun with depth of field. Plus, you get the feel of the riding on that day. That awesome winter condition when it's cold and dusty all at the same time and your tires are going to hook up on anything. You know he's cookin' when you see a guy drifting and roosting when you know that conditions like that are so grippy. It's the only shot in this round that actually tells a story to me.
Trevor Hansen - rank 2
Like Mr. Hylands, I thought the diagonal lines added to the quality of this shot. What struck me most was the gnarly environment. The lens got this high speed off camber shot in a spot with a lot of roots, bleak trees and a big old knot balled tree right by the rider. I appreciated how fast this guy looked but I didn't like the straight leg on the pedal and the other foot off the pedal. Great atmospheric shot that reminds me of good fall season high speed ripping in Nelson. Top notch shot but when compared to week 8 it gets the silver from me.
Jerry Willows - rank 1
A crisp and clear shot that has feeling of speed with the trail of dust.... definitely my style of riding. The off camber roots and tree trunk on the left give the shot some nice texture. The rider and bike add nice contrast so it stands out to its surroundings.
Two things in my opinion that this shot could improve on is composition and rider position. The subject is too center for me and if the rider had both feet on the pedals with a Shaums March riding position, it would be an absolutely stellar shot.
Pete Roggeman - rank 2
The crisp detail and vivid colour of the rider against the muted earth hues of the forest keeps my eye occupied. Nice subtle use of flash. Looks like a fun trail when dry that gets diabolical when wet. With the rider in a more dynamic position, it would be that much better, but the roost and his body english show that he's charging. Makes me think of awesome early Fall days when the ground is still dry and the days are still long.
Week Six Winner. Zbojnicak DH/FR track- Photographer: Jan Tekel|| Rider: Matyas Palko.
Week Seven Winner Chosen by Dylan 'Stubs' Dunkerton
Jay Sinclair - rank 4
Dylan chose a great winner for week 7 but the photo was deemed outside of the rules. So Adam Laidlaw's image got promoted to winner. I had a tough time getting over the lens flare in this shot as well as the quality (it looks like a video grab to me). I know what the photographer was trying
to do and I like the concept (although I have seen a ton of POV shots from the bike in motion). I think it could have been executed better. Altogether not a bad grab, but it just doesn't scream winner to me.
Johnny Smoke - rank 4
Sorta neat, but I don't really get off on it. I usually agree with Stubz, but I didn't feel this shot the same way he did. I know he did some cool tech stuff to get this effect, but it looks like a polaroid to me. Neat? yes. Money? No.
Trevor Hansen - rank 4
Though I enjoy the perspective, from behind the fork, I get a little dizzy from this shot. The sun flare gets to my head. I did like the angled view of the grass ahead though. When compared to the other three this month I have to rank this one the lowest.
Jerry Willows - rank 4
No comment given.
Pete Roggeman - rank 3
I have nothing against this shot, I just liked the other two slightly more. This is super though, and it's as if it could be a still from a detergent commercial in the 'out getting muddy on a sunny day' scene. The angle of the horizon is used to excellent effect and the motion blur sets everything off. Check out the way the light catches the hub and spokes.
Week 7 winner. Self portrait by Adam Laidlaw
Week 8 winner chosen by John Gibson
Jay Sinclair - rank 1
I like Devan Wyka's shot of Brock Anderson for this month's winner.
I love the "end of the world" feel this shot has. The processing makes this
shot. If it were me I would have cropped some of the dead space from the top
of the frame to tighten it up, but that's just me. Coolest shot for me this
month.
Johnny Smoke - rank 2
Do you believe it? I'm giving the epic hip second place. It's an epic shot for sure, but it feels more like luck than skill. I'm usually the guy that rewards the lucky shooter too, but if I'm gonna recommend a guy for the finals, he'd better have a shot at the win, and in this round it's pretty obvious to me who has the skills.
Trevor Hansen - rank 1
At first glance I thought this one was a shot with some misty clouds in the background but knowing its a dust show gives it even more props from me. The black and white makes it look stark. The rider's relaxed table seems like it was caught at the exact moment of stasis between going up and coming down. It's not a big move but when all the elements: lighting, colour choice, dusted background, shot timing are combined this one stands out the most as the April monthly winner.
Jerry Willows - rank 2
Good composition and use of colours in this shot. I'm also always a sucker for hip jumps and this photo give me that feeling of hipping it out. I personally would like to see the LZ (landing zone) as it gives the photo more depth.
Pete Roggeman - rank 1
In a bike world increasingly full of photos of jumping, this one sticks out like a H2 in a Whole Foods parking lot. I like that the lip and the rider have been given equal reverence. The white sky isn't blown out when you consider how well it scales all the way down to the clump of earth and sod that helped spring Brock into that stylie table. The shooter and shootee both killed it for this shot.
Money Shot Week 8 winner. Rider ~ Brock Fraser. Photo ~ Devan Wyka.
At this point I have asked Devan Wyka - currently the April winner - to send me a high res. version of the shot above. He didn't know what I meant by 'high res.' that. I have since tried to determine if he is actually interested in photography but he hasn't responded.
Our rules state that you must submit a high res shot to claim your prize. This is one way to ensure that a submitted image wasn't taken by someone else. So far no high res. image and no response from Devan. We may have to bump the third place shooter into the finals. But I'll give him a day or two to get his act together..
In the meantime all of you the freeriding public have an opportunity to nominate the wild card entry to the finals. This should be a shooter who has submitted strong work through much of the competition but for whatever reason didn't manage to win a weekly prize. This shooter will go toe to toe with the other finalists for a chance to win our grand prize. To see all the Money Shot entries for 2008 click here.
The package includes lift tickets and an all access press pass and $500 from Kokanee Crankworx, Accommodation and breakfast and dinner for most days from Bear Back Biking, a Norco Shore to ride while you are at Whistler and of course the opportunity to shoot the very best mountain bikers in the world at the most prestigious slope style event there is.
So chime in with your wildcard choice, any comments on the April winners as well as random Money Shot comments - right here.
| Devan Wyka - to finals | Jan Tekel - to finals |
Sami Makki | Adam Laidlaw |
| Judge | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points |
| Pete Roggeman | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Trevor Hansen | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Jay Sinclair | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Johnny Smoke |
2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Jerry Willows |
2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Avg. Rank/Total pts. | 1.4 | 23 | 1.6 | 19 | 3.2 | 9 | 3.8 | 6 |
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