It’s been a long time coming, but the votes have been counted, Holga consulted, and we are ready to announce our winner!
Before that, we just thought we would congratulate everyone on the incredibly high quality of the entries. We would feel proud to put each and every one on the website. The remaining entries will appear once weekly over the next year.
Many thanks to the Holgablog writers for their time during the voting process, also a big ‘thankyou’ to Holga Inspire for their sponsorship of the competition, which wouldn’t have happened without their kind support.
So without further ado, we present the winner of our Holga Competition 2009:
Pieces of Me, Left for You
Danielle Hughson
I left pieces of myself for you,
proof that I had been there -
pink petals on a resting bench,
your first initial spelled out
in blossoms that had fallen like snow -
I knew you’d know.
I hid for a time in the corner
of the fountain where we kissed -
missed the hum of your words,
the things I’d heard while the water
coursed down like a curtain -
I’d been so very certain.
I let the ocean taste the salt
of my skin. And tears, of course -
they all married in the waves,
honeymooned in seashells.
I judged from what they heard -
I knew they’d pass the word.
I haunted all the places we had been
as the seasons slipped me by -
at a playground in the Spring,
I let the world spin me ’round,
I picked a pumpkin for you in the Fall -
then hid it in the vines that sprawled.
I told the golden field to whisper
in the wind when you passed -
I quoted lyrics to the grass
so that the right song
might spring into your mind -
among the others that I’d left behind.
I captured moments of my life on film,
in all the minutes ticking by -
the photons sticking firm in stories,
images to flirt with the rest of the world
but that began their lives, I always knew -
as hidden love letters to you.
So CONGRATULATIONS! to Danielle, you can choose ANY Holga camera you want as your prize, including the new snazzy Holga TLR.
The judges at Holga Ltd had the final decision, and their comments on Danielle’s work was:
The poem and pictures are successfully connected. The pictures echo the mood of the poem so beautifully. Most importantly, the pictures and poetry enigmatically provoke the viewers emotion. Viewers feel connected with the photographer/poets feelings. We can feel the beauty of the reminiscence of love.
On a photographic level, the pictures illustrate a dreamy romantic past. The soft focus and dreamy quality definitely highlight the heartfelt emotion.
In all, the stunning pictures with the beautiful poetry add great depth to the work.
We couldn’t agree more! Well done Danielle!
Stay tuned in coming months for further stories/essays from the competition. And thankyou to everyone who entered, ALL entries were great 
Comments
YEAH Danielle!!! Congrats!
So beautiful. The poem made me cry, the images made me smile, and together, they were like perfect bittersweet melting chocolate.
Congrats Danny!!
Great work, congratulations.
Great winner! I’m looking forward to sorting out the other entries every week…they were all so good!
My congrats to Danielle too! I love this one. This was a really tough one to judge – such a shame there could only be one winner. Hope you all enjoy the rest of the entries…
[...] Holgablog announces their contest winner! [...]
A breathtaking series of photos, and a beautiful poem. Each so suggestive of the other…