Lockdown Photography: Winners and Honourable Mentions

During the height of lockdown we asked you and your kids to get creative in photography, arts & crafts, videography and written word / audio, as part of our Forces Voices competition.

All photography entries were judged by Cpl Rebecca Brown - the first female soldier to win the British Army Photographer of the Year award in this year’s Army Film and Photographic Competition.

Here are the winners and honourable mentions from the photography category and the stories behind them. Click here if you want to see more creative masterpieces. 

Winner Adult Category - Ian Bridge: Locked Down But Not Out 

"During the lockdown I started to photograph smoke and other things around the house like droplets and flowers and dandelions. It was very therapeutic and whiled away the hours."

Honourable Mentions

Paul McFarland: New York At Night

"During lockdown I was looking for inspiration. I found it in a box of screws, in the garage.

"I thought I could produce a 'cityscape' loosely based on lower Manhatten in New York."

Mick Howard: Inside Out

"My image was captured during week one of lockdown at the boarding school I work at. 

"The image was shot on my iPhone set with a timer of ten seconds. I utilised the back of a dining room chair, shooting through the slats to mimic a look of prison cell bars.

"The chair also offered a lower viewpoint which adds to the feel of the image.

"I wanted myself to be silhouetted and a dark feel to the image - also shooting at a wide-angle to make myself small in the frame.

"The image is more a concept of what I suspected some people may of been feeling like during the crisis rather than how I was feeling.

"With a thought of the mental well being and the sense of total isolation some people must have been experiencing at the time."

Tom Franks: Thanks For Noticin' Me

“Thanks for noticin' me” is a familiar quote from Eeyore - a donkey from Winnie the Pooh.

"This friendly chap, who looks ever so much like Eeyore, came up to us, had a nose around the car and scratched his head on the wing mirror.

"He then relaxed on the grass which gave me the perfect opportunity to get down and personal with this mellow animal."

And here are the winners and honourable mentions for the under 18 category. 

Under 18 Winner: Evie Rutherford: The Light Of My Life 

"This is a photo of one of my dogs, Luna.

"I love photography in general, but specifically taking photos of my dogs - they mean so much to me and I know that one day the photos I take and memories I make will be the only thing left of them.

"Luna has helped me so much during these uncertain times. It’s impossible to be sad when she’s around, and the photo really represents that - even when you feel surrounded by darkness, she’s the light that is still shining, brightening up my life."

Honourable Mentions in Under 18 Category 

Isabel Joyce: Think Happy 

“I was getting really bored and sad that I had to stay in because of the virus so my mum and dad took me out for a walk on camp.

"It was such a beautiful day, and it cheered me up.

"So I took my mum's phone and took pictures of the most beautiful things I could see.

"This reminded me that there are still things to be grateful and happy for. Now I look at them to remind me when I’m having a bad day.

"I love how this palm tree has been shown from a unique viewpoint."

Evie Rutherford: The Beautiful Butterfly 

"I think it’s important to remember that you don’t have to go to a world-renowned place of beauty to get a good shot, sometimes the best photos are right on your doorstep.

"I found this beautiful butterfly gently perched on a Buddleia in the garden.

"It’s easy to forget about the smaller things in life (in this instance quite literally), but if you pay close attention, you’ll be amazed at what you can see."

Mali Hattie: Cute

"I went for a walk during lockdown and sat on top of a hill with my rescue greyhound, Herbie, and realised it makes my heart warm when Herbie looks me straight in the eye."

You can view more of these lockdown creative masterpieces here.