An amateur photographer based in Toronto will have his award-winning coffee-themed image featured at the 2021 SPARK Photo Festival in Peterborough in September.
Lucas DeClavasio was unanimously selected by judges as the winner of the national ‘Focus on Coffee’ competition, presented this spring by PhotoED Magazine, Sparkplug Coffee, and the SPARK Photo Festival.
DeClavasio submitted a unique series of five digital double-exposure images that “wowed the judges”, according to a media release.
“He planned each of the five images to poetically reflect each stage of coffee at home from the craving, to the first sip, and through to the last drop,” reads the media release.
Of the five photographs submitted by DeClavasio — entitled ‘Give Me Coffee’, ‘First Sip’, ‘Focus’, ‘Caffeine High’, and ‘Last Sip’ — the judges chose ‘Focus’ as the one that best represents a creative, imaginative, and technically well-executed interpretation of the competition’s theme.
“The double exposure is captured in-camera with the intention of portraying the physical effects of caffeine and the feeling of that first sip,” DeClavasio says. “It’s like your body is in bloom and your mind is ready for whatever the day has in store for you.”
DeClavasio, who specializes in black and white photography, credits the pandemic for his return from a photography hiatus.
“I needed a creative outlet,” he says. “My overarching goal with my photography is to embrace the chaos surrounding us, reconnect with my surroundings, and hopefully find a way to mentally cope with all these external factors.”
As well as having his winning photograph exhibited at the SPARK Photo Festival in September, DeClavasio will receive a year’s worth of Sparkplug Coffee and a year of PhotoED Magazine.
DeClavasio’s photograph will also be featured on the packaging of a special edition of Sparkplug and SPARK Photo Festival 2021 coffee, which will be released in time for the festival in September and will be available for purchase online across Canada.
The other four images in DeClavasio’s series will be shared on the social media channels for Sparkplug Coffee, SPARK Photo Festival, and PhotoED Magazine, along with judges’ selections of submissions from other Canadian photographers.
