Joshua Roth New Talent Competition - American Bonsai Society

April 12, 2005: I recently submitted my entry for the American Bonsai Society New Talent Competition. Do I think I am one of the very best new talents in North America? Not a chance! Do I think that the entry process and the competition itself will be daunting to enough people so that I have a chance? You bet!

This is not a competition to be entered at the last minute. Like much in Bonsai, preparing the entry portfolio takes time. Ideally, that preparation should begin (at least the photography) the summer season before the entry deadline.

During the past month I have been preparing my portfolio. They ask for at least four trees; I have given them six. I tried to show a range of work: The trees included a ponderosa (the subject for the finals) cascade, A Brazilian raintree, a Barbados cherry, a bougainvillea, a Black Hills spruce, and a shimpaku cascade. I probably should have had a deciduous tree (I have two trident maple forests), but they simply were not ready in time to photograph. One of these trees had only about an hour’s work before photographing (the Barbados Cherry), but it just came out pleasantly for me. (These trees can all be seen in my BonsaiTalk gallery.)

This was a considerable amount of work, since two of my best trees needed substantial restyling. One had been nibbled by deer, another was a spruce that I had taken the wiring off too soon, and which had gone back to its previous shape!

Trying to clean up the trees and photograph them during the spring before the deadline can be a daunting task, even if Nature cooperates and you do not have a late spring!

It is far better to continuously record your best trees as you go, remembering to get several different views, over a period of time. That is what I believe was intended in the entry requirements.

Snapshots will not do. Photographs must show the tree clearly. A solid color background is strongly advised. If you use natural light, it is important to avoid distracting shadows.

If bonsai photography is new to you, refer to a guide, such as Carl Bergstrom’s excellent “Old Mr. Crow’s Guide to Photographing Bonsai and Kusumono”.

http://octavia.zoology.washington.e...ai/photography/

Another advantage of keeping a photographic record is that it helps you keep track of how the tree is developing, and, in some cases, as in that of one of my best trees, a ficus, will reveal that it is simply not ready for a photographic competition.

I decided to enter about a month before the deadline. The three weeks after that were a blur of styling (including pulling trees from their winter storage), assembling materials needed for the portfolio, preparing my comments on each tree (Now that the entry has been sent in, there’s so much I feel I should have added to my comments.), and taking photographs.

Sometimes, the picture will reveal a minor change in styling that is badly needed. Then the cycle for that tree goes back to its beginning! Sometimes, you will discover that you should have used a better background, changed the lighting, or the viewing angle of the tree – especially for trees in round pots!

However, this three weeks “under pressure” has been one of my very best bonsai experiences. It has forced me to make hard styling decisions, “NOW!” and to pay attention to detail in a way that I had only when preparing for a show. I am a better bonsai artist for having done that, mainly because I have become more focused.

In a way, I find this has some aspects that are very different from other contests. For example, being “new talent”, I am not expected to show trees that have had obvious years of dedicated tending, let alone know any but the basics of branch and “cloud” development. It is expected that there are plenty of techniques that I have yet to learn. It is important to remember that this is a competition for beginners.

I’d strongly recommend that you give it a try!

(I was accepted and will be a finalist at the WBC in Washington, DC, Memorial Day weekend. I will write another article dealing with preparation and the final contest.)

Congratulations on being accepted, and best of luck in the contest! We'll be thinking good thoughts for you and your trees.

Joanie

Bart, Congratulations.

First, could you fill me in on how a new talent "competition" works when some of your trees have been previously styled by the likes of Shinji Suzuki and Kunio Kobyashi? Does this have to be totally "own work" or can the influance or work of others be OK?

Second, Have any update photo's of any of those trees in your gallery?

Thanks, Al

Well done bart! Go knock 'em out.

Best of luck

Mike

Bart, my thoughts are with you.... wish I could be there to see you win!

Jay

Congratulations Bart, I'm sure you'll knock them dead, hell if they gave a prize for great attitude, you would have already won.

Nice to see that you use Bates techniques also.


Will

Al:

In the case of the Kobayashi tree, I also submitted a picture of the tree as received. Deer and two years had intervened. The Suzuki spruce was a workshop tree, that had "sprung back" when I removed the wiring last spring.
All of this was disclosed to the judges. It is one reason I submitted six trees, so that I would still have a viable entry, if they rejected them. The rules are silent as to the rest of that question. (They can be seen on the ABS website.)

Shortly after the photos were submitted, the shimpaku began to lose color. I am now convinced that it was dead when I styled it, a victim of a long thaw here in January that killed a lot of bonsai in this area. Had I been aware of this, I would not have submitted it.

The submitted photos of these trees are all in the gallery. They were taken in April.

All: Thanks. I am keeping notes on my preparations for this trip (space is limited, since we are taking David Yedwab's exhibit tree.) and plan to post articles on that and on the competition experience itself after the competition

Bart

Thanks for the article. It was fascinating to see thepreparation required to enter this impressive contest.

Bart,
How long have you been doing" bonsai?

Do you know how many entries they have?

Dale

I began with a beginner class at Chase Rosade's March 24, 2001. Sice then, I have done about 15-20 classes/workshops per year at Chase's, plus others at other locations. The competition is open to anyone with less than 10 year's experience.

I do not know how many entries they had. I know at least one person did not make the cut.