[Contest] Winner of the Peter Hurley DVD Facebook Contest

We had hundreds of entries into the Peter Hurley DVD Contest on Facebook, and trust me when I say Peter had a hard time choosing his favorites. There were an exceptional number of fantastic photos, and we are happy to say that the talent pool in the Fstoppers Facebook Group runs pretty deep. But there had to be a winner, and that is Toshiko Kuno! Here is what Peter Hurley had to say about picking the winner:

"When fstoppers announced a headshot contest for a shot at the DVD I didn't want to miss the chance at checking out all the work you guys submitted. In the initial contest post there were only a few rules: Upload your best white/underexposed background headshot, and make sure to write “This is my entry for the Peter Hurley DVD contest” in the description. Entries must be received by Feb 7th.

So that gave you an idea of which direction to go, but in judging those shots there were so many variables to consider. There was no mention of a commercially viable headshot that an actor would use for their marketing tool, which is the work I do day in and day out. There wasn't anything about color or black and white. Everything has gone color in my world, but I didn't want to rule out black and white shots. In my work, actors need to look directly into the camera and make eye contact with the casting director that is looking to cast them in a particular role, but no mention of that either.

So I decided to go with expression, emotion and the overall vibe I got from the shots. I want people to feel something from my work, so as I looked through these I was going off more of feel than anything else. Yes, the shot had to be technically sound, lit well, and convey something similar to my look. So those aspects helped me narrow down many of the images submitted.

For me, headshots are really about whether or not the person in the shot is behaving as they would if the camera wasn't even there. I like a reactive look to something that they are experiencing at the moment the shot was taken. That's what I'm going for on a daily basis in my own studio. That is what I love to see, and that is why I chose Toshiko Kuno's entry for the contest as the winner. This image made me stop and think, "What was said at the moment this shot was taken to create that expression on his face?" That is what I want everyone to wonder about my own work, so great job and congrats Toshiko!"

Toshiko Kuno

Toshiko, send us an email at contactfstoppers@gmail.com and we will send you a code to download Peter Hurley's The Art Behind the Headshot. Congratulations!

Honorable Mentions
I also wanted to acknowledge the other's that gave me a similar feeling as to wondering what was going on, so here are the runner ups in no particular order:

Tord Thott
Love the intensity of this guy by Tord Thott.

David P Reardon
David P Reardon shot of this guy made me wonder what this character what up to for sure.

Matt Tinney
The innocence of Matt Tinney's daughter is amazing, but I wasn't sure if it was entered in the contest, still would've been a runner up though.

Georgi Anastasov

Cody Cho

Brittney Parkinson Anderson

Ahmad Aledan

Bonus Winner!
Both Peter and most of the Fstoppers' staff really enjoyed one image in particular but because it caused an unnecessary uproar, members of the Facebook group had it pulled. Congratulations Edd Carlile for an amazing portrait of your daughter as she makes light of her chickenpox virus. If innocent, non sexual "nudity" doesn't grossly offend you, check out Edd's amazing portrait here and also check out the portrait he did of his son in a similar way. Could Edd be the next Sally Mann or Jill Greenberg?

Thank you to everyone who entered, and again congratulations to our winner Toshiko Kuno!