Rangefinder Magazine
June 2005

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Breaking All the Rules
Red Bull Tunnelvision Contest Winners

It was midnight on April 8 when 31 students from eight universities across Oklahoma and Texas took to the streets of downtown Oklahoma City to “break the rules” of photography using the Holga™, a plastic toy camera (from $15 to $30 on the Internet) that breaks all the rules. The catch: None of the students knew what the competition categories would be before arriving.

At midnight, the students were briefed on the categories and given their tools (a Holga camera and two rolls of film). With a 12-hour time limit to complete the task, they had their work cut out for them! The Holga camera was chosen for this competition, because it is known for its unpredictability, double exposures, and lens flare, which make it the nemesis of professional photographers. However, in this competition the goal was not to take photos that fit the seven categories, but rather photos that intentionally disobeyed the rules of each category. With categories like “Shoot in Focus” and “Avoid Negative Space,” the students had a lot of rules to break and the perfect instrument with which to do it.

They Came, They Conquered, They Won!
After judges Shannon Cornman, chief photographer of The Oklahoma City Gazette, Jerry Stewart, photography professor from Oklahoma City University, and Ron Jackson, a well known photographer in the Oklahoma City area, reviewed all of the submissions, the winners for each category and a selection for “Best in Show” were chosen.

Category I—Adhere to the Rule of Thirds: Lindsay Harkness, University of Oklahoma	Category II—Keep the Background Simple: Sara Brooks, University of Oklahoma
Category III—Do Not Use Odd Cropping: Naomi Takebuchi, University of Central Oklahoma	Best in Show: Stephen Hughes, University of Central Oklahoma
Category V—Shoot an Obvious Focal Point: Stephen Hughes, University of Central Oklahoma	Category VI—Tell One Story in the Picture: Romy Owens, Oklahoma City University
Category VII—Avoid Negative Space: Chris Otten, University of Central Oklahoma	Category IV—Shoot in Focus: Brandon Herrera, Classen School of Advanced Studies