APRIL 2007 NJPPA CLIPS RESULTS

APRIL 2007 NJPPA CLIPS RESULTS

Contest judged by Shmuel Thaler, Shaminder Dulai and Kate Falconer from the Santa Cruz Sentinel

News
1st Amy Newman, Herald News, ‘Firefighter evacuates boy in Lodi’
2nd Jim Anness, The Record, ‘Boat on flooded street in Little Falls
3rd Robert Sciarrino, The Star Ledger, ‘Flood and fire in Bound Brook’
HM Jim Anness, The Record, ‘Flipped car on Route 46’

Comments
A strong category with lots to choose from, first place rose to the top of a lot of flood photos – great moment showing the human impact of the flooding. Second place was a nice perspective of the flooding with great use of the entire frame. Third place was a nice moment showing the combination of flood and fire. Lack of emotion on the subjects and the telephone pole in the center of the photo dropped the entry to third. Honorable mention was a very clean shot of a rainy day car wreck with good story-telling quality.

Feature
1st Jose Moreno, Courier-Post, ‘Easter prayer through cross’
2nd Thomas Franklin, The Record, ‘Goose umbrella’
3rd David Warren, Philadelphia Inquirer, ‘Inflatable bunnies’

Comments
Once again, first place rose quickly to the top from a weak pool of entries. Great use of the cross-shaped windows to tell the story of parishioners celebrating Easter. A refreshingly innovative view of the kind of assignment we shoot every day. Second place was a nice moment of interaction between human and goose. Third place was a humorous moment framed nicely.

Sports
1st Frank Wojciechowski, Princeton Packet, ‘ Snowy lacrosse’
2nd Tyson Trish, The Record, ‘Play at first’
3rd Tariq Zehawi, The Record, ‘Safe at second’
HM Tony Kurdzuk, The Star Ledger, ‘Puck against the boards’

Comments
First place was a great lacrosse peak action shot in the snow. A wonderfully surprising shot with very strong graphic quality. Second place was a baseball shot that transcended the typical slide into first shot with a nice kick to the face and dynamic position of the two players. Third place is a nice humorous moment with great expressions from the players. Honorable mention was a well-done hockey shot with great placement of the puck.

Portrait
1st Leslie Barbaro, Herald News, ‘ Murderball’
2nd Thomas Franklin, The Record, ‘Charlie’s records’
3rd Thomas Franklin, The Record, “Basketball player in hall’

Comments
A very weak category where we struggled to come up with any winners. The best of the lot was a clean and nicely lit shot of a wheelchair athlete. Second place utilized interesting framing and repetitive shapes. Third place was well lit, but the judges felt the photo in the foreground felt forced and unnatural.

Feature Multiple
1st Leslie Barbaro, Herald News, ‘A nun’s story’
2nd Tony Kurdzuk, The Star Ledger, ‘A New Jersey few know’
3rd Kevin Wexler, Herald News, ‘What lies beneath’

Comments
The judges loved the first place entry about the daily life of a nun. Each image stood on its own as a strong picture and the photographer did a great job of elevating a seemingly mundane subject into a dynamic picture story. Second place was a well-done series of photos giving a glimpse into a trouble spot in the news. The shooter obviously spent time and effort to get the trust of the subjects and the variety of images was excellent. Third place had a number of good pictures introducing readers to a part of their community they may not know. Good attempt, but it needed a bit more depth to elevate to first or second place.