Our Judges for 2024

Ellen Anon is a professional photographer, writer, speaker, and educator specializing in nature and fine art photography. Her images, based on nature, are sometimes realistic and sometimes abstract but always designed to elicit emotional reactions from the viewer. Ellen's goal with her photographs is to go beyond the ordinary in ways that hopefully stimulate others to pause and appreciate some of the beauty and wonder of our earth that balances some of the stress of everyday life.

Ellen's images are included in collections in several countries and her photos have been showcased in galleries, used in numerous publications (including Sierra Club's "Mother Earth" and Inner Reflections calendars), as well as stock. She has had several images awarded in the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year competitions as well as other competitions including the Windland Rice nature’s Best competition.

Ellen has authored books, such as the popular Photoshop for Nature Photographers; A Workshop in a Book series and the highly acclaimed See It: Photographic Composition Using Visual Intensity, eBooks on various photographic software and techniques, including the recent "Secret Ingredients of Lightbox and Black Cloth Photography". She is honored to be a member of the SanDisk Extreme Team.

Visit Ellen's website at: https://www.ellenanon.com/

Tin Man Lee was originally from Hong Kong and now resides in Los Angeles. He believes in the power of storytelling through wildlife photography and hopes to awaken empathy in people to help wildlife. He was the grand prize winner of Nature’s Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International contest and his works had been displayed in the Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History. He has served as judge for Nature Photographer of The Year and Bird Photographer Of The Year. He teaches wildlife photography and has over 1000 students worldwide.

Visit Tin Man's website at: https://tinmanlee.com/

Nature photographer, teacher, author, and inventor George Lepp became one of Canon’s first Explorers of Light in 1995 and is now a member of the Canon Legends program. His passions for beauty, precision, cutting-edge technology, and environmental responsibility are revealed in his compelling images, which are widely published and exhibited. Lepp’s university studies in wildlife and wildlands management were interrupted in the 1960s by service in the U.S. Marine Corps. He then earned a BA and honorary MSc from Brooks Institute of Photography and began his career working with scientists at UC Davis and for Car & Driver. Lepp is the former Field Editor of Outdoor Photographer magazine and has shared his knowledge of all aspects of photography through hundreds of publications and lectures. A founder of the North American Nature Photographers Assoc., he has been honored by many awards, including Photo Media Photography Person of the Year, the Photographic Society of America’s Progress Award, and NANPA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Visit George's website at: http://www.georgeleppimages.com/