Athlone-based photographer honoured in global competition

An Athlone resident has been honoured in the world's largest free photography competition, where he placed in the top 1,000 entries worldwide.

Todor Tilev received the recognition for his image 'Murmurations of Starlings', taken over Lough Ennell, which captured the wonder of starlings sweeping across the winter sky in unison. The photo was named as one of the top 1,000 entries for the CEWE Photo Award.

The CEWE Photo Award runs every two years and is open to photographers of all levels, with more than €250,000 worth of prizes on offer. Last year's competition saw more than half a million photos submitted from people in 147 countries.

Born in Bulgaria, Todor has been living in Athlone for some 20 years, and his work has previously been published in 'Lonely Planet' and 'National Geographic'. His projects range from Bulgarian churches to Irish coastal scenes, all with a focus on capturing nature's drama and atmosphere.

In previous years he also enjoyed success in the International Photography Awards the Paris International Photography Awards and the Moscow International Photography Awards.

His CEWE photo award recognition will be celebrated at a free exhibition in Dublin's Chocolate Factory on September 12 and 13.

The exhibition, staged by CEWE with Irish band Picture This, will showcase the band's fan photo competition shortlist alongside Irish CEWE Photo Award entries including Todor's.