Celebrating Excellence in Photography: Highlights from the 2025 Awards Evening
The 1st of February was The Guild of Photographers Awards evening, where we both got dressed up for a black tie event held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Stoke on Trent.
It is always a fantastic evening with friends and fellow photographers. An incredible night, made even more special because we were both awarded The Photographer’s Bar in the Scapes category!
"The 'Scapes Category' is for images of Landscapes, Seascapes, Astroscapes (including deep space), Urbanscapes, Street Scenes, architectural captures, etc.
Basically, any image that is a pictorial capture of the environment we live in."
2024 Awards
This is a huge achievement that takes a full year of dedication.
To be awarded The Photographer’s Bar, you have to submit images over 10 months to the Guild’s Image of the Month competition and gain enough sufficient points throughout the year.
Every photographer in this room dedicates so much time each year chasing a number of titles that are awarded, so it really is amazing to see the awards they receive, the joy and the tears of happiness too!!
You may have wondered why you get the odd post throughout the year from Monima or Carl when we receive our awards each month, because those points count towards the Photographers Bar.
A massive thank you to everyone who supports us on this journey; it truly means the world to us both! ❤️
Back in 2024, after a couple of years of successfully shooting competition photography with the Guild of Photographers in the 'Open Category', we both decided we needed a new challenge.
Now Monima was a proud owner of a VW Campervan, this gave us the flexibility of being able to stop over at locations that we wished to visit early in the morning or late at night. Usually early mornings or late evenings produce the best lighting for landscapes, so it seemed the natural choice to choose this category.
Photography to Monima and myself is more than just a job; it's something we are passionate about and thoroughly enjoy doing, as it gives us the opportunity to travel the length and breadth of the UK and beyond, getting out in the fresh air and taking photographs of anything we love to capture.
Steven Thirsk presenting Carl with his award
Image Courtesy of Christopher James Hall Photography
Steven & Leslie Ann Thirsk presenting Monima with her award
Image Courtesy of Christopher James Hall Photography
Footage from The Guild of Photographers awards evening with Monima & Carl picking up their awards
Monima & Carl Simpson-Smith