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Enlightening the Future of Creativity by Jamie Griffiths

About Me

Before starting at EIZO, I could never have guessed I would consume more content around colour management and the creative workflow than anything else. But here we are, and I must say it has been a privilege to learn and become a massive part of my everyday life.

My name is Jamie Griffiths, you may know me, but the likelihood is that you do not. I joined EIZO in 2021 as a Marketing Executive focusing on the Creativity and Enterprise market sectors. These are exceptionally interesting and unique industries full of talented people with some awe-inspiring stories to tell, so in an honest attempt to follow suit, here is one of mine.

Enlightening the Future of Creativity

The EIZO Student Awards is an annual competition hosted in the UK that provides students studying photographic and filmmaking courses an opportunity to showcase their talent and develop real life experience that will hopefully give them a head start in the creative industry.

This was my first time running the competition, but having faced something similar myself, graduating not so long ago, it is an area I feel passionately about. I quickly found that I could relate to what the students were going through which provided the team with a unique perspective from planning to the awards ceremony.

The 2022 Student Awards was EIZO’s 4th and most successful edition yet thanks to over 200 entries from over 40 Universities. We are thankful for the support we have received from each of the Universities and of course the students who dedicated their time to enter.

This story is all about the students. Everyone who entered had the same task; to choose a brief and create a portfolio of photography that fulfils the brief. What I love about working with creatives is despite working from the same briefs and following the same process, each entry was unique, and you could see their personality reflected in every image. The creative vision is subjective and derived from an individual’s interpretation, which in turn is based on their experiences, values, style, and eye. This made for an outstanding variation and quality of work that even surprised our judges.

We were overwhelmed by the responses from the students and for the first time had the opportunity to meet some of them in person at the Exhibition & Awards Ceremony in Ascot, England. Where we transformed our Customer Experience Centre into a gallery to display printed and mounted photography from the 15 finalists invited. It was a memorable day for everyone involved and my highlight when thinking back!

Not only could you see the creativity first-hand, but it reinforced the link between capture and tangible output; the creative workflow is a journey from concept, to capture, to output. We see ourselves as an important part of the creative toolbox because the output is reviewed, edited, and finalised on our screens.

EIZO as an organisation is more than 50 years old and has a mission statement about enriching others with every product we create; we have been part of the creative workflow for a long time now thanks to this shared purpose and how we work with creatives to help bring their creative vision to life. How can you create what you intended when you cannot see an accurate representation of your work?

I know first-hand that the professional workplace is different from University, and I hope activities like our Student Awards can provide a steppingstone in the nuanced process of thinking like a professional – so these students can meet the needs of future clients.

The 3 winners for the 2022 EIZO Student Awards were also announced during the ceremony: Isobelle Whiteman from North Warwickshire and Hinckley College, Jason Paul Stirland from Norwich University of the Arts, and Harry Foulkes from Falmouth University. Each winner was chosen by one of the judges, winning an EIZO ColorEdge monitor and mentorship with their respective judge.

The creatives of tomorrow will be made up of those starting their careers today. EIZO’s commitment to the creative industry goes beyond the innovations of its products and continues into its actions and values as a business. It is our duty to pass the knowledge and expertise we have onto the next generation.

The Student Awards is a platform to achieve this and would not be possible without the collaboration of like-minded people and organisations. We all share the same goal, to create a more prosperous environment where creativity continues to thrive. Credit must go to the following for their parts in making the 2022 competition a success:

Charlotte Wales (@charlottemwales) – Competition Judge

Harry Borden (@harryborden) – Competition Judge

Rob Rusling (@robrusling123) – Competition Judge

Peter & Paul – Creative Agency Partner

Sanjay Jogia (@eyejogia_photo_cinema) – Global ColorEdge Ambassador

Fabrizia Costa (@fabrizia.costa) – Photography webinar ‘Secrets of the Pros’

As we begin the same process all over again for 2023, I am hugely excited to be working with new and existing partners to make the EIZO Student Awards better than ever before. How can we help elevate the next generation of creatives? And what will this year’s winners go on to do in the future?

If you’d like to come on this journey with me, then stay tuned in @eizocolour on Instagram and explore our Student Awards section here: www.eizocolour.com/student-award/

If you're interested in learning a little more about me, then feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/griffithsjamie

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