Art
Experience the next-level photography as winners crowned at Red Bull Illume
Ben Thouard has won the overall crown at the fifth edition of the Red Bull Illume Image Quest 2019, with his fabulous surfing shot. Take a look at the best of the entries here.
A record-breaking 59,551 images were submitted into the world's greatest action and adventure sports imagery contest, but only one special photo could take top honours.
The winners were crowned during a ceremony at the LUMEN Museum perched 2,275m (7,464ft) high up in Kronplatz, South Tyrol. A judging panel consisting of 50 photo editors and digital experts picked their favourites from the 60 finalist images, which had been separated into 11 categories.
French snapper Ben Thouard was the big winner on the night, with his underwater surfing image first coming out on top in the Energy category and then being named the Overall Winner.
Discover the story behind all the winning category images, complete with quotes from the photographers, below.
Red Bull Illume 2019 – Playground winner
© Lorenz Holder / Red Bull Illume
Red Bull Illume 2019 – RAW winner
© Noah Wetzel / Red Bull Illume
Red Bull Illume 2019 – Lifestyle winner
© Alexander Wick / Red Bull Illume
Red Bull Illume 2019 – Wings winner
© Philip Platzer / Red Bull Illume
Energy & Overall Winner – Ben Thouard, France, shows the power of surfing with his underwater shot of Ace Buchan kicking out from the barrel through the wave in Teahupo’o, Tahiti.
Thouard said: “I‘ve dedicated the last few years to shooting underwater, looking for new angles and a new way to shoot surfing and waves. Tahiti has some of the clearest water in the world, so it was easy for me to take advantage of it and explore it. This photo was shot during a freesurf session. Luckily I was right below, breathless with my waterhousing waiting for this moment and I was able to capture the whole sequence of it. This frame from the beginning of the sequence is the most powerful one because of the water around his face and body.”
Best of Instagram by SanDisk – Baptiste Fauchille, France, with a shot showing Alex Bibollet’s shadow in the bowl of Fillinges, France.
Fauchille said: “I remember the heat was insane like it rarely had been in the Alps. I asked Alex Bibollet to do what he did best and I immortalised this moment!”
Creative by Skylum – Denis Klero, Russia, for his visually striking image of Paul Alekhin to celebrate the change of season in Streetfire Club, Moscow, Russia.
Klero said: “I started working on a concept to show the change of seasons. To attract the attention of the social media world it had to be something that would make one stop and stare.”
Emerging by Red Bull Photography – Jean-Baptiste Liautard, France, with this mirrored shot of Jeremy Berthier at his trail in Bourgoin-Jallieu, France.
Liautard said: “Two things that I love when it comes to photography are silhouettes and reflections and I wanted to use both in a single frame for a long time. After a lot of drawings, I knew what I wanted, but it took me six months to get the perfect conditions and final ideas.
Innovation by Sony – Laurence Crossman-Emms, United Kingdom, takes the imagination by storm with this image of Katy Winton BMXing through a puddle at Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales, United Kingdom.
Crossman-Emms said: “This concept had always been in the back of my mind, but finding the perfect location and it aligning with both the weather and sufficient puddle depth was tough. You can never guess how water reacts when you hit it with force, sometimes the results exceed your expectations, this was one of those times.”
Lifestyle - Alexander Wick, Germany, for his tribute shot of Philipp Bankosegger, Chris Rudolph and Luke Lalor taking a nap by Salathé Wall, El Capitan, Yosemite National Park, USA.
Wick said: “No uncharted terrain, but a well-known and established route. Having a rest amidst a sea of granite: probably almost as amazing as back in the days gone by.”
Mastepiece by EyeEm – Lorenz Holder, Germany, for his shot of Senad Grosic flying in the magical Game of Thrones location, The Dark Hedges, Northern Ireland.
Holder said: “The first time I saw this location was when I was watching Game of Thrones and I was blown away by the pure magic this road generated in me. The rain came on our last day and I still remember the goose-bumps I had when I saw the image appearing on the screen of the camera.”
Moving Image – Rupert Walker, Canada, for his precise shot featuring Brandon Semenuk and Ryan Howard riding down a custom built slalom line in Paso Robles.
Walker said: “It was particularly challenging because it required extreme precision from the FPV drone pilot, Jonny Durst and during this shoot we experienced very heavy rain, which caused the track to be nearly unrideable.
Playground – Lorenz Holder, Germany, with a shot of Vladic Scholz in the surreal Ouse Valley Viaduct, South England.
Holder said: “When you approach it from the side, you can‘t really see the secret this bridge has to offer, but once you get underneath of one of the arches you can‘t believe your eyes. “When I showed Vladic an image of the viaduct, he was on fire to try it out.”
RAW – Noah Wetzel, USA, for his shot of Chris Bule riding under the Total Solar Eclipse in Teton Valley, Wyoming, USA.
Wetzel said: “The imagery goal was to capture the Eclipse and showcase mountain biking utilising an in-camera double exposure – a very complex process. “Our only option required the athlete to hit the feature in near darkness at 9pm.”
Wings – Philip Platzer, Austria, captures athlete Marco Fürst flying on an unthinkable hot air balloon swing in Fromberg, Austria.
Platzer said: “I asked the athlete to turn a little bit towards my direction to avoid getting an ass-shot and to get this playful mood in the image. In the end it was the very last try which gave us the money shot.”