Agfa expands imaging award to PICAs

Pictured: Digital Ink Directors Ray Langmaid and Scott Muskett at the Tasmanian  awards receiving a platinum PICA from Agfa's Garry Muratore

At next year's National Print Awards Agfa will celebrate a sponsorship as old as the NPA itself.

"Technically the award is a year older than the NPA," said Agfa's regional marketing manager Garry Muratore. "We actually awarded a prize to the Advertising Print Production Association in 1982, which was seen as a precursor to the establishment of what is now known as the National Print Awards."

Back in 1983 Agfa along with Heidelberg were the original sponsors of the major awards on the night, whilst the Heidelberg award was given for quality in print, the Agfa award was given for the most creative use of photography in printing. "In the eighties Agfa was very much a photographic company so the link between commercial photography and printing was obvious," explained Muratore.

But as analogue photography gave way to digital imaging, the Agfa award had to change to reflect the shifting technologies. "Around 2001 we realised that more and more imaging used in print was not in fact photography as we had once known it. We saw a greater use of digital techniques both in the design and production processes. Not long after, Agfa divested of our commercial photographic business, so we met with the NPA committee and changed to judging criteria of the award to recognise the newer digital processes available to the industry," said Muratore.

The Agfa award is now known as the Most Creative Use Of Imaging In Print and has allowed recent winners to take advantage of imaging techniques other than photography. "This has included lenticular printing, stochastic and cross modulated screening as well as colour separation techniques beyond conventional four colour process," said Muratore

Introduction to the PICAs

Last year Tasmanian PICA committee chairman Simon Bevan introduced three 'Platinum' PICAs which mirrored the major awards that Agfa, Heidelberg and PaperLinx award at the NPA and later this year the Victorian PICA committee will apply a similar approach in their inaugural event.

This year's Tasmanian event produced over a dozen entries that qualified to be considered for the Agfa award which was judged prior to the PICA event last Saturday evening. The result was a stunning piece of printing entered by local design firm Digital Ink.

"We were asked to produce cover art for an book celebrating 50 years of the Clarence District Cricket Club" said Digital Ink director Ray Langmaid. "Our Senior Designer Tony Hickey created a cover image utilising a compilation of thirteen separate images which were combines and retouched within PhotoShop to create the feeling of a darkened club room."

Garry Muratore who presented the award to Digital Ink's directors commented: "Such a production matches our judging criteria perfectly. To take so many differing images in isolation and to create such a warm and invoking cover is testament to Tony and Digital Ink's obvious skills."

Pictured: PICA committee Chairman Simon Bevan and Agfa's Garry Muratore with the many contenders for the Agfa sponsored PICA