January 9, 2009 - The [AG]WPJA today announced the winners of the Q3 2008 Photography Contest, sponsored by D-65 Digital Workflow Workshops.

The [AG]WPJA contests were created with the hope of establishing a bridge between the worlds of photo manipulation and wedding photojournalism.

We are truly grateful for all the incredible photographers who submitted entries into this contest. These award-winning images will surely inspire us all to create more innovative wedding images in the future.

The award winners were selected by a panel of independent judges:

Round #1: Carol Guzy, David Leeson, John Kaplan, Martha Rial, and Denis Finley

Round #2: Seth Resnick and Andrew Rodney

THE TOP THIRTY PHOTOGRAPHERS FROM THE Q3 '08 CONTEST

Photo by Emin Kuliyev, New York First Place - Getting Ready Getting Ready Category Description: Entries which spontaneously capture the prepping, grooming, arranging, outfitting, and anticipation before the ceremony. Top Ten Winners From This Category: 01. Emin Kuliyev, New York 06. Dino Lara, Philippines 02. Dino Lara, Philippines 07. Shane Snider, North Carolina 03. Anna Kalina Ciesielska, Poland 08. Ryan Browne, England 04. Daniel Chen, Illinois 09. Jules Kent, England 05. Dorota Kaszuba, Poland 10. Emin Kuliyev, New York

Photo by John Hudetz, Colorado First Place - Ceremony Ceremony Category Description: Images that capture guests and participants throughout pre-ceremony, vow-exchange, and receiving line activity. Top Ten Winners From This Category: 01. John Hudetz, Colorado 06. W. Scott Chester, Georgia 02. Ryan Jones, California 07. Olivia Leigh, Illinois 03. Kenneth Paul Soong, Canada 08. Erica Turner, Missouri 04. Oka Morikawa, Finland 09. Kelvin Koh, Singapore 05. Jesse Chamberlin, Georgia 10. Raymond Phang, Singapore

Photo by Wendy Woods, Minnesota First Place - Reception Ambiance Reception Ambiance Category Description: Photos that demonstrate the photographer's ability to capture the feeling, majesty, and ambiance of the reception, as they highlight the most appealing aspects of the setting (reception halls, tents, patios, beachfronts, woods, etc.), where the reception took place. Top Ten Winners From This Category: 01. Wendy Woods, Minnesota 06. Marcin Rusinowski, Poland 02. Joanne Dunn, Italy 07. Derrick Ong, Singapore 03. Emin Kuliyev, New York 08. Paul Van Hoy, New York 04. Emin Kuliyev, New York 09. Aziz Khan, England 05. Lelia Scarfiotti, Italy 10. Emin Kuliyev, New York

Photo by Shane Snider, North Carolina First Place - Emotion Emotion Category Description: Entries that unobtrusively freeze intriguing expressions ranging from joy to tears. Top Ten Winners From This Category: 01. Shane Snider, North Carolina 06. Bartosz Jastal, Poland 02. Edwin Tan, Malaysia 07. Raymond Phang, Singapore 03. Zach Chin, Malaysia 08. Otto Schulze, Colorado 04. Alex Tan, Singapore 09. Daniel Chen, Illinois 05. Piotr Gajewski, Poland 10. Emin Kuliyev, New York

Photo by Zach Chin, Malaysia First Place - Creative Portrait Creative Portrait Category Description: Images that employ a fresh and artistic approach to portraiture in capturing the bride, groom, bridal party, family, friends, children and/or any other posed wedding party member. Candid moments are not eligible for this category. Top Ten Winners From This Category: 01. Zach Chin, Malaysia 06. Alfonso Longobardi, Italy 02. Jane Shauck, Connecticut 07. Melia Sorenson, Canada 03. Aaron Willcox, California 08. J.R. Geoffrion, Illinois 04. Sean Flanigan, Washington 09. W. Scott Chester, Georgia 05. Bartosz Jastal, Poland 10. Marcin Rusinowski, Poland

Photo by Dino Lara, Philippines First Place - Ring Details Ring Details Category Description: Entries that depict shots of the rings, either set-up and controlled by the photographer or as they were found. Top Ten Winners From This Category: 01. Dino Lara, Philippines 06. Kori Hudson, Arkansas 02. Emin Kuliyev, New York 07. Bartosz Jastal, Poland 03. Emin Kuliyev, New York 08. Ryan Jones, California 04. Emin Kuliyev, New York 09. Emin Kuliyev, New York 05. Jason Hudson, Arkansas 10. Emin Kuliyev, New York