Three striking portraits have landed a local photographer high praise from an international photography competition.

Douglas-based photographer Jason Kinrade (right) was awarded three Bronze awards with distinctions at the recent Portrait Masters awards, a competition run twice a year by the Portrait Masters website, which promotes and offers expert advice in the art of taking classic and contemporary portraiture.

Jason’s submitted five images in to the competition, with three of his studies being voted into the top slots by the judging panel, made up of 12 top international, professional portrait photographers.

Among Jason’s images were two portraits of children and one of a male, each one featuring warm, almost sepia tones and classic lighting.

What has made Jason’s awards more impressive is that it is the first time he has entered his portraits into a national competition.

He said that taking part in such competition can have a lot of benefits for helping him to develop as a photographer, including critical feedback and professional advice.

’This is the first time I have entered the portrait masters competition, so I am very happy to have been given these three awards,’ said Jason.

’I decided last year that will go for it, after giving it a lot of thought and after been tempted to enter competitions like this before.

’I really thought it would be a good opportunity to receive good, critical feedback from professional portrait photographers.

’To have my work recognised like this is, by a professional panel of judges such as these, is great.’

All the five images submitted were shots taken for Jason’s professional portfolio.

Jason was helped by the extended deadline to the competition.

The Portrait Master’s awards usually asks for images submitted to be taken within the past 12 months, but due to the ongoing Covid lockdowns, they extended that to 24 months.

’I take mainly professional portraits,’ he said.

’When I started to become interested in photography, I began taking panoramic shots and landscapes, along with all sorts of things like interior and lifestyle shoots and food photography.

’However, once I got more into portrait photography, I found that I liked it more.

’I like to have the personal connection and the spontaneity that you have with a live model and the interaction can add a great deal to your photographs.

’As for these portraits, I like the fact they seem to have a classic, almost Rembrandt-style of lighting to them.

’I do like to play about with the lighting and use the shadows to help give my pictures an atmospheric feel.’

While photography is not Jason’s full time job - he works as an education and events coordinator at Brightlife in Andreas - his work has appeared in many publications , including local magazines Agenda and Gallery, and the Isle of Man Government’s Aerospace Cluster brochure.

More recently he was given the chance to go to London Fashion Week to photograph the catwalks shows for Preen the fashion brand owned my Manx designers Thea Bregazzi and Justin Thornton.

More of Jason’s work can be seen at jasonkinrade.com