#MyFlixelHoliday Cinemagraph Contest

The winter holidays is one of the best seasons of the year. We say that genuinely, even though this winter is one of the chilliest ones yet here in our hometown Toronto. We’ll bare the burden of frigid temperatures, because they signal the coming of all of our favourite things. Sweet, warm beverages by the fire; pretty lights and ornaments decorating the whole city. And sure, while we don’t appreciate our noses falling off in -30 degree weather, we sure do enjoy the beautiful charms of a snowfall on a crisp, winter day. The holidays also mean plenty of time spent with our loved ones, and finding joy even in the quiet moments. But we already knew that about ourselves. What we wanted to find out is what the holidays mean to you. So, we held a cinemagraph contest.

We challenged cinemagraph artists to capture the spirit of the holidays in a living photo for a chance to win some awesome prizes from our friends at Moment and Format (with a little Flixel love thrown in). The fine print: their entry had to include any two of the following items: warm beverage, fire/flame, ornaments, lights, and/or snow. Throughout the month of December, our hearts grew threefold thanks to the entries that remind us why this time of the year is so special. From childlike wonder, to cozy nights, and even a few fun takes on a snowy day, we loved seeing how participants celebrate this time of the year.

Here are the winners of the #MyFlixelHoliday Cinemagraph Contest, who kindly shared some thoughts on their entries and this special season:

1st Place: Fox Ornament by Brieanna Patrick

“I started making cinemagraphs using Flixel as part of a school assignment this year (I study Graphics, Multimedia and Web Design at New England Institute of Technology) and I became hooked pretty quickly… some might say obsessed. I love the magic and story they bring to my still photography, and I felt like they would be the perfect way to document my holiday season this year!

I love this time of year, we always get a fresh cut tree and fill it with a new woodland creature ornament, a collection my mother-in-law started for us a few years ago. This little fox is my favorite. I wanted to document the fox this year because we have a little fox family living in the yard this year and I often see their footprints in the snow or catch a glimpse of them running by, and it brings me so much joy.”

2nd Place: “The Night Before Christmas” by Renaud Davies

“I love to take cinemagraphs of my children because they grow so fast, and because it truly is magical to be able to look back at those moments as a living photo. For me, the holidays are all about family. I live in Japan with family in both Canada and India. Consequently, it is quite difficult for all of us to get together for the holidays, so every year I make sure to capture a few special family moments to share. This Christmas my daughter was old enough to understand who Santa is. She spent quite a bit of time watching Christmas classics and looking at Christmas picture books. She was mesmerized. It was fun to watch her little toes wiggle with excitement as she flipped through pages of red and green – something only a cinemagraph can capture.”

3rd Place: “Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…” by Lucas Canino

“My holiday contest entry was shot on the first day of the ski season in the Bavarian Alps. I had met some friends there to shoot a weekend of skiing, hiking and camping in the mountains, and we were greeted by what everyone told us was the most snow they’ve had in years that early in December. The peak was a complete white-out, but below the tree line we found a winter wonderland. I captured this cinemagraph of Sabrina with my Sony A7s II on a tripod as she relaxed in her festively-red down sleeping bag and drank some tea amid the snowfall. To me, it has the effect of an eternal snow globe – she’s always there, warm and happy as the flakes falls endlessly around her.

Over the last four years, since moving to the UK from Chicago, the holidays have come to mean appreciating both what’s around me and what’s far away. What’s running around me most these days is my four-year old daughter Lola, for whom this season is arriving at the perfect moment. Everything happening around her is wonderful and exciting, and my wife and I have loved mixing a simple blend of the best of our own holiday traditions with something new and special for our small family.

What’s far away (besides snow), are our parents, siblings and many of our friends. A few always manage to visit us during the last couple of weeks in the year, but we make the most of the web and my cameras to connect our holiday experiences with theirs in meaningful ways. Having our lives visually stream together means that Lola’s grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins share her most festive moments with her from wherever they are in the world, while we share theirs.”

Thank you to everyone who participated in this cinemagraph contest! Check out the rest of the holiday cinemagraphs here and stay tuned for our next contest!