Melbourne photographer Keren Dobia has won the top prize in the 2017 AIPP Australian Professional Photography Awards (APPA), for a series of illustrative portraits.

One of the four winning images. Photo: Keren Dobia.

Dobia, the 2017 AIPP Australian Professional Photographer of the Year, is a creative director for theatre productions, which has her designing costumes and sets.

‘My background in painting and drawing has allowed me to blur the line between photography and illustration,’ she said.

Dobia’s multidisciplinary creative talent allowed her to style subjects, design props and costumes, as well as capture the photos and handle post-production.

Photo: Keren Dobia.

She told ABC Breakfast she spent half a day to set up this scene (above), and only ten minutes to capture it. She also uses post-processing to place additional details into the images.

The series is part of a larger project which aims to photograph Australian creatives, which she plans to exhibit upon completion. She currently has completed six out of 25 portraits.

Dobia, a graduate of NMIT Diploma of Photoimaging where she now lectures, also won the Portrait Category and the Epson Signature Worthy Award.

Photo: Karen Dobia.

APPA is the largest and longest running awards for professional print photography in Australia.

There was around 500 entrants this year, and 2000 prints submitted.

The Landscape Category, won by Broome photographer Yane Sotiroski, was the most entered with 309 entrants. This is followed by Illustrative with 279, and Portrait with 264.

The full list of winners:
• 2017 AIPP Australian Professional Photographer of the Year – sponsored by the AIPP – Keren Dobia
• 2017 AIPP Australian Portrait Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Canson – Keren Dobia
• 2017 Australian Epson Signature Worthy Award – sponsored by Epson – Keren Dobia
• 2017 AIPP Australian Commercial Photographer of the Year – sponsored by PPIB – Angela Miller
• 2017 AIPP Australian Creative Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Leica – Leah Kennedy
• 2017 AIPP Australian Documentary Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Nikon – Kelly Champion
• 2017 AIPP Australian Family Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Giclee Media Supplies – Katie Kolenberg
• 2017 AIPP Australian Illustrative Photographer of the Year – sponsored by EIZO – Kris Anderson
• 2017 AIPP Australian Landscape Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Fujifilm – Yane Sotiroski
• 2017 AIPP Australian Newborn Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Sigma – Jodie Andrews
• 2017 AIPP Australian Pet/Animal Photographer of the Year – sponsored by digiDIRECT – Angie Connell
• 2017 AIPP Australian Science Wildlife and Wild Places Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Lacie – Steven Duncan
• 2017 AIPP Australian Travel Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Camera Electronics – Mick Porter
• 2017 AIPP Australian Wedding Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Atkins Photo Lab – James Simmons
• 2017 AIPP Australian Album of the Year – sponsored by Momento Pro – Eric Ronald
• 2017 AIPP Australian Photographic Book of the Year – sponsored by Momento Pro – Steve Scalone
• 2017 AIPP Australian Emerging Photographer of the Year – sponsored by IPS – Barbara Brown
• 2017 AIPP Australian Student Photographer of the Year – sponsored by Kodak Alaris – Alec Morris
• 2017 AIPP Overseas Photographer of the Year – sponsored by digiDIRECT – Kelvin Gilbert
• 2017 Australian Highest Scoring Print – sponsored by ILFORD – Tania Malkin and Marija Sullavan
• 2017 AIPP Australian Tertiary Institution of the Year – sponsored by Nikon – North Metropolitan Tafe, Western Australia
• 2017 Grand Master Award – sponsored by the AIPP – Andrew Campbell