January 2012 clip contest results

Winning images

Feature
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Actors"
2nd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Diver"
3rd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Swans"

Judges comments: These photos immediately stuck out to us as the top 3 in the category for their use of light, color and composition.

General News
1st - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Vigil"
2nd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Retiring Chief"
3rd - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Firefighters"

Judges comments: These three images are more than just point pictures and we appreciated that. They showed the photographers were thinking and trying to make the best images they could from the scene. General news doesn't have to be straight-forward and it was nice to see images from scenes that were explored and captured well.

Portrait
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Fencer"
2nd - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Monkey"
3rd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Shoe Designer"

Judges comments: We really liked the first place photo but thought it would have been more successful if the eyes were brighter. The second and third place photos had nice light and tones.

Sports Action
1st - Joel Hawksley, Ohio University, "Runners"
2nd - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Buckeye Basketball"
3rd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Rebound"

Judges comments: This was the largest category but it had a lot of generic action photos. Photographers need to remember that technical excellence and composition are just as important in sports photography as they are in news and features. We chose the winners here because they were the cleanest and had the strongest focal points in the frame.

Sports Feature
1st - Joel Hawksley, Ohio University, "Bobcats Win Over Miami"
2nd - Joel Hawksley, Ohio University, "Team Prayer"
3rd - Andy Morrison, Toledo Blade, "Mascot"

Judges comments: This category was really weak. There is always so much happening on the sidelines and between players at sporting events and there wasn't much entered here. The photos that won could still have been composed a lot better. As photographers, we need to explore these situations just like we would walking around a neighborhood. Don't just settle for what's happening in front of you. Wander around and explore. Look for the light and the little moments that would otherwise go unnoticed.

Spot News
1st - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Barn Fire"
2nd - DISQUALIFIED
3rd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Ice Rescue"

Judges comments: This was a pretty small category overall. For the 1st place image, we thought the photographer captured the intensity of the situation and the eminent sense of danger leads to a successful spot news image.

Feature Story
1st - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "R.O.T.C. Training"
2nd - Barbara J. Perenic/Springfield N, Springfield News-Sun, "East Asian Fest"
3rd - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Joe Biden"

Judges comments: All three of these would be improved with editing and less repetition. Stories are hard to produce and take a lot of time to get right. Every picture needs a purpose to advance the story and needs to say something different than the other pictures.

Judges: From the Columbia (MO) Daily Tribune, staff photographers Ryan Henriksen, August Kryger, Parker Eshelman

March 2012 clip contest results

Winning images

Feature
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Memorial Mass"
2nd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Nursing Now"
3rd - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Python"
HM - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Blackbird at Sunrise"

Judges comments - Some very strong images in this category. First place was an amazing catch with a great moment and good light. Second place had strong composition and a very good take away from a job fair. The third place image was very cute, loved the wide eyes of the kids, but we would have liked a cleaner background to help the subjects pop a little better.

General News
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Student Protest"
2nd - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer, "Glenn Honored by NASA"
3rd - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer, "Rick Santorum"

Judges comments - The first place protest photo has great action, a good capture that shows the attitude of the subject very well. Second place was a very good moment from an assignment that doesn't always lend itself to good images. Third place was much better than the standard politician photo, however it would have been nice to have Santorum looking at the children instead of into the distance.

Illustration
1st - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Salsa & Cheesecake"
2nd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Tempura Maine Lobster"
3rd - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Chicken Tortilla Soup"

Judges comments - The first place had a very good composition for the design that was used. Second place was a nice shot with good complimenting colors. Third place utilized a lower angle to really show off the food's texture.

Portrait
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Living Alone"
2nd - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Consider Biking"
3rd - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Governor's Art ward"

Judges comments - First place was a great portrait that really gave the feeling the photographer was looking for, loneliness. Second place was a very nice idea and we liked the symmetry. Third place was a nice portrait with a cool location, but the lighting looked a little flat.

Sports Action
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Blue Jackets Hockey"
2nd - Neal C. Lauron, The Columbus Dispatch, "State Wrestling"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Clean and Jerk"

Judges comments - First place had very good peak action with the airborne puck and a good face on the player. The second place image utilized a nice angle and again decent peak action, with the kid's face mashed into the arm. The third place photo also had good expression, but we would have preferred a looser crop.

Sports Feature
1st - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "State Swimming"
2nd - Neal C. Lauron, The Columbus Dispatch, "State Wrestling"
3rd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Twinsburg Celebration"

Judges comments - The first place image was a great moment and the background set the scene very well. Second place was a very good moment, kudos to the photographer for leaving the mat and going behind the scenes. Third place had great reaction but could have benefited from a looser crop.

Spot News
1st - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Driver Trapped"
2nd - Patricia Schaeffer, The (Lisbon) Morning Journal, "Accident Victims Treated"
3rd - Scott Heckel, The (Canton) Repository, "Standoff Ends"

Judges comments - We really liked the moment in the first place image, a very nice catch. Second place benefited from great access and showed the action of helping the patient very nicely. Third place was a good moment as well, but the crop seemed awkward.

Picture Story
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Obama Visits Columbus"
2nd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "St. Patrick's Day Parade"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "OU March Madness"

Judges comments - The first place story had very strong images throughout with nice variety. Second place had a very good variety of angles and moments from a basketball game, with good action and features. Third place was a good collection of shots from the game, with decent action and features.

Judges: from the Centre Daily Times, State College, PA, staff photographers Christopher Weddle and Abby Drey

April 2012 clip contest results

Winning images

Feature
1st - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Statehouse Tour"
2nd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, ""Lead Poisoning"
3rd - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Light Table"
HM - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Butterfly"
HM - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Red Carpet Watchers"

Judges comments: We were able to breath a sigh of relief with this category. Many strong frames to look at, but again, the winners rose to the top quickly. First place made up laugh instantly, any time you can get that reaction, you're starting well. Great frame from what could have been a boring assignment had those kids not dressed up. Well executed. Second place was strongly aided from the cutline. Strong frame, made even stronger when you read what the story is about. Well done both as a visual journalist and with words. third place was great light, well done exposure, very simple but effective. The honorable mentions were nice frames as well. We debated on the two butterfly images we saw, but agreed the cleaner photo worked better, could be cropped from the sides a bit though. We also liked the photographer approached the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction differently with the silhouette, but almost took it back when we noticed the same photographer entering silhouettes regularly in other categories. Don't over use it.

General News
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Vigil"
2nd - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Precycle Day"
3rd - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Final Salute"

Judges comments: After these images, again extremely weak category. Many more entries but some supremely poorly executed. There could have been real moments in some of the funeral coverage, but the crops chosen instantly eliminated many of them. The first place image was easily the best of what we saw. Great light, real moment, very well done. The second place image was a good find in what we all believed could have been a very boring assignment. The third place image could, like almost every funeral image we saw, have used a better crop. Completely lose the right side of the frame and come up from the bottom and this may have contended for second. Nothing else stood out.

Portrait
1st - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Heroin Addict"
2nd - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Distance Runner"
3rd - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Cartoonist"
HM - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Travis Mollohan"

Judges comments: A category with a lot of potential in which the winners were vastly better than the competition. First place was our clear winner. Strong emotion and graphic detail from a serious subject. Second place showed a lot of creative effort and was pretty well executed. The lights in the left side of the frame threw us a little when compared to the rest of the image. Third place was well executed. Honorable mention went to the baseball player who also performed musically. Not an earth-shattering image, but well executed to show two sides of a student's life.

Spot News
1st - William A. West, Wwest News Service, "Rome Firefighter"
2nd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Oil Company Fire"
3rd - William A. West, Wwest News Service, "Steak House Crash"

Judges comments: This category was very weak. We liked the the framing in the first place image, but after that it was tough to find any other images we cared for. Second place was at least a bit different. It's not everyday a tanker explodes, but this guy on his bike could care less. Third had a lot of potential, but was executed very poorly. Direct strobe, the look of the subject not only directly at the camera but somewhat confused. The background elements really could have played that photo up better if executed correctly. Overall, again, very weak category with few entries.

Sports
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Prom Dress Rugby""
2nd - Scott Heckel, The (Canton) Repository, "Opening Day Shadows"
3rd - Phil Masturzo, Akron Beacon Journal, "Fence Crasher"
HM - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Diving Play"

Judges comments: Sports was another weaker category. Some of the crops on images we saw had us scratching our heads. Images turned into single column verticals, images with f/16 level depth of field. These again quickly rose to the top. First place was a very different rugby match, and a good frame that was well balanced. Second place was very well composed and that made an average frame a much stronger one. We would have cropped up from the bottom a bit though. Third place was a great capture of the peak action moment, but was shot far too deep. The honorable mention for the short-stop sliding stop was because we felt the photographer just missed the moment. Great light, but the peak moment was maybe one more frame off.

Sports Feature
1st - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Heiduk Retires"
2nd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Kenton Ridge Celebration"
3rd - Lorrie Cecil, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Play at the Plate"

Judges comments: I feel like a broken record: extremely weak category. First place was the only image that set itself apart on an initial pass through the entries. Great moment from what is almost always a bland one. Great job by the photographer to see it. Second place was a good jube shot in nice light, and had little competition beyond it. Third place had a great moment, but was the wrong frame. Crop was off and loose and we couldn't see the second red team player, which made an awkward visual moment. But, the moment of exasperation was strong, and a good catch, and needed the elements around it to make sense.

Picture Story
1st - Tom Dodge, The Columbus Dispatch, "Prison Baptism"
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Soldier's Funeral"
3rd - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Praise Dance"

Judges comments: We cannot stress enough how bad this category was. If possible to not award any places we would have. First place was only awarded first because it was the only actual story. Second and third were collections of images from funerals. There was no narrative. Submitting 10 images from an assignment does not make a feature story. The only other entry was another collection of images from the OSU/KSU Final Four game. Again, simply submitting 10 images from a sporting event is not a story. Only one image was not from the court. We do feel though, that least in being forced to award the funeral photos, viewers can see the same photos we saw throughout general news that left us scratching out heads at how some real possible moments could be destroyed by poor crops and execution.

Judges: From the Casper Star Tribune, Kyle Grantham, Dan Cepeda and Alan Rogers.

May 2012 clip contest results

Winning images

Feature
1st - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Giraffe Sculpture"
2nd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Memphis Kiddie Park"
3rd - Karen Schiely, Akron Beacon Journal, "Doused"
HM - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Vintage Baseball"
HM - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Butterfly"

Judges comments: The quirkiness of the first place image made us all laugh when we saw it. Very nice find on a feature hunt. This was the strongest category in the contest making it the most difficult to judge. Great moments in the second and third place images.

General News
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "No Water"
2nd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Veteran's Flags"
3rd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "National Day of Prayer"

Judges comments: These three images really stood out for us. The first place image illustrated what could be a visually-challenging story very well.

Portrait
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Near Death Experience"
2nd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Strawberry Farmer"
3rd - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Bees"

Judges comments: We really liked the lighting work in the first place frame. It appeared to be a tough story to illustrate with a portrait given the victim wanted to remain anonymous. However, the photographer did a great job finding a way to make it interesting.

Spot News
1st - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Double Homicide"
2nd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Burning Building"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Shooting Reaction"

Judges comments: First and second place clearly stood out as the strongest images. The first place image had a clear face and emotion.

Sports
1st - Scott Heckel, The (Canton) Repository, "Winning Run"
2nd - Chris Parker, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Out at Second"
3rd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Diving Attempt"

Judges comments: Strong emotion at a peak moment in the first place frame followed by nice action in the second and third place frames.

Sports Feature
1st - Chris Parker, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Regional Loss"
2nd - Scott Heckel, The (Canton) Repository, "Game Winner"
3rd - Chris Parker, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Home Run Celebration"

Judges comments: Very nice reaction frame for first place followed by two celebratory shots for second and third place. These frames stood out for us in the category.

Picture Story
1st - Karen Schiely, Akron Beacon Journal, "Surgery Prep"
2nd - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Vintage Fans"
3rd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Race For the Cure"

Judges comments: Clear first and second for us. In the first-place story, we liked that the photographer took the initiative to spend time on the story. This shows because we have beginning, middle and ending shots. Story could be stronger with a tighter edit, but that said it was the clear choice for first place. We liked the historical juxtapositions in the second story, especially in frames 5 and 8.

Judges: From the South Bend (IN) Tribune, Visuals Editor, Santiago Flores and Staff photographers James Brosher and Robert Franklin.

June 2012 clip contest results

Winning images

Feature
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Face Spray"
2nd - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Dime Dog Night"
3rd - Eamon Queeney, The Columbus Dispatch, "Fountain Leap"
HM - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Kiddie Pool"
HM - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Field Corn"

Judge's comments: First place is definitely the kind of picture that's going to get you to stop on a page and make you read the caption. We've all seen a lot of "kid in the sprinkler" pictures, but this is really well done.

General News
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Marine Week Weaponry"
2nd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Watching Venus"
3rd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Flag Burning"

Judge's comments: First place is fun and unexpected. Interesting juxtaposition of the giggling girls and these tools of destruction.

Illustration
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Near Death"
2nd - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Edamame Spread"
3rd - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Smoking Ban"

Judge's comments: First is visually impressive, definitely the kind of illustration that would make me want to stop and read the story.

Portrait
1st - Chris Parker, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Quadruplets"
2nd - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "BlackMarket Tattoos"
3rd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Near Death"

Judge's comments: Would've liked to see more in this category. First place has nice light and a bit of a moment from what had to be a challenging portrait shoot.

Spot News
1st - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Overturned SUV"
2nd - Eamon Queeney, The Columbus Dispatch, "Lighting Strike"
3rd - William A. West, Wwest News Service (WNS), "Burning Car"

Judges comment's: First place is textbook spot news. Tight and immediate, but you know exactly what is going on. The look on the child's face makes it, you feel that visceral tug in your gut that you only get when you see a child in distress. The close second place is an example of great framing and layering. Love how the identical houses really draws your attention to the void where the roof should be.

Sports
1st - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Rugby"
2nd - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Flying Club"
3rd - Lorrie Cecil, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Collision at the Plate"

Judge's coments: The top three are really nice, but I was surprised to see this category fall off quickly. First is fun, with the tangle of legs and the neck-breaking body positioning.

Sports Feature
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Artful Pitching"
2nd - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Pole Vault Warm Up"
3rd - Eamon Queeney, The Columbus Dispatch, "DeSales Celebration"
HM - Lorrie Cecil, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Rally Caps"
HM - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "Hoover Celebration"

Judge's comments: There were a lot of frames here that I thought really belonged in the Sports Action category. First place is really nice seeing. Sure, we've seen the shaft of light on the pitcher before, but this is really well executed and the perfect squares filled with the crowd in the background really make this.

Picture Story
1st - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Flag Burning"
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "OSU Graduation"
3rd - William A. West, Wwest News Service (WNS), "Soldier's Funeral"

Judge's comments: First place really impressed with the visual variety, a lot of strong individual photos that worked well together.

Clips judged at the Tampa (FL) Bay Times

July 2012 Clip Results

Winning images

Feature
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Headfirst"
2nd - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "HOF Balloon Festival"
3rd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Python"
HM - Lisa DeJong , The Plain Dealer, "Horse Show"

General News
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Pruning"
2nd - Lisa DeJong , The Plain Dealer, "The Biggest Loser"
3rd - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Handicap Ramp"
HM - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Call to Duty"
HM - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Enola Gay"

Judges comments: First: Nice isolation with use of depth of field on subject. Second: Great expression and moment captured. Third: Good composition and storytelling image. HM-Departure: If cropped tighter, could have jumped into top three.

Portrait
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Short Wave"
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Shattered Windshield"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Success Program"

Judges comments: First: Good use of the light, could use tighter crop. Second: A solid storytelling portrait. No question on what it was about. Third: Colorful basckground and nice lighting.

Sports Feature
1st - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Under the Trees"
2nd - William A. West, Wwest News Service (WNS), "Little League"

Judges comments: First: Different than the rest, nice light and composition. Second: Photographer was attempting a different shot of the field. But they don’t look too excited after winning their game.

Spot News
1st - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "Car Train Collision"
2nd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Tear Gas"
3rd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Murder Suspect Arrested"

Judges comments: First: Tells the story with use of layers. Second: Nice timing with shot, interesting scene… Don’t see SWAT everyday in action. Third: Better than the rest. Not a strong category overall.

Sports
1st - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Battle for Ohio"
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "MLS Soccer"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Header"

Judges comments: First: Solid action using a wide angle, good composition. Second: We don’t understand how that guy got so high off the ground. Has wow factor. Third: Nice, clean action shot. Better than the rest.

Picture Story
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Advocates"
2nd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Hillbilly Lanes"
3rd - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "ZipZone"

Judges comments: First: Advocates had more of a storytelling package than the rest. Has a bunch of good moments captured. Second: A good variety of photos of the guy for the package. Third: Another good package with a mix of detail and action shots.

Judges: From the Winon (Minn) Daily News; Andrew Link, Rory O’Driscoll, Joe Ahlquist and Sydney Swanson.

Aug 2012 Clip Results

Winning images

Feature
1st - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Pig Scramble"
2nd - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "Oversized Chair"
3rd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Chicken Judging"
HM - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer, "Mary Had a Little Horse"
HM - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Pig Races"

Judges comments: Interesting fair moments caught here. The pig scramble takes first for the emotion expressed by the pig and competitor. The giant chair photo catches a great moment between a mother and a son. The use of light and color in the 3rd place and honorable mention photos was great.

General News
1st - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "County Fair Queen"
2nd - Lorrie Cecil, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Vigil"
3rd - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer, "Purple Martins"
HM - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Cowboy Funeral"
HM - Tom Dodge, The Columbus Dispatch, "Animal Welfare Protest"

Judges comments: Nice variety of emotions in this category. The county fair queen photo is the clear winner with a nice show of emotion by the subject.

Portrait
1st - Tom Dodge, The Columbus Dispatch, "Jessica and Tiny"
2nd - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Remembering Her Sons"
3rd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Mitchell Trubisky"

Judges comments: The first place photo has excellent framing and emotion. Her face combined with the dog's expression makes this photo work well. The expressions combined with the environment make me want to learn more about her. Nice work. The second place photo is executed well and is always a difficult shoot. The reader can get a general idea of what is going on here without having to read the caption. Also nice work. The third place photo of the football player is well lit and nicely done. Sports portraits can be run of the mill but the posing along with the use of light, especially on the floor, is a nice touch.

Sports Feature
1st - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Powder"
2nd - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer, "Cleveland Triathlon"
3rd - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "Victory Kiss"

Judges comments: The first place photo is clean and has a nice use of color between the white of the students and powder combined with the blue sky and green lettering on the sign. The frame is clean and is composed well. The boy with cerebral palsy giving the thumbs up in the second photo makes this a nice moment. Without reading the caption it is clear that something special is happening here. The third place photo is a nice moment shared between the two players after a win.

Spot News
1st - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer, "Copper Thieves"
2nd - Tom Dodge, The Columbus Dispatch, "Emergency Landing"
3rd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Storm Damage"

Judges comments: The two men who seem to be laughing or expressing incredulity after being arrested for allegedly stealing copper is a great moment. While the other photos depict carnage or destruction and make for good photos, this one sticks out. The helicopter with wires indicates how close the pilots may have been to a much worse fate.

Sports
1st - Lorrie Cecil, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Making the Save"
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Without a Helmet"
3rd - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Ground Ball"

Judges comments: The first place photo is an excruciating moment. Great composition and framing of the goalie. The second place photo has well executed composition and framing. The three players nicely fit together. The third place baseball photo has good horizontal elements and framing making for a clean frame where the focus is on the ball.

Picture Story
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Dr. Gordon Gee"
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "President Obama"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Cowboy Funeral"
HM - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "First Year Teacher"
HM - Lorrie Cecil, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Circus"

Judges comments: While there were some similarities that could be drawn between the Gee and Obama stories, the Gee story takes first place because of the proximity to the subject and variety of emotions during the day. It has a wide variety of images with a variety of emotions making it a well-rounded story. The reader is drawn in by Gee's personality expressed in the photos. The Obama story has a good variety of images from a seemingly difficult assignment. The photographer who shot the cowboy story takes a difficult and unusual assignment and turns it into a tight photo package. Nice job on all three.

Judges: The photo staff at the Knoxville (TN) News Sentinel

September 2012 Results

Winning images

Spot News
1st - Tom Dodge, The Columbus Dispatch, "Taxi Crash"
2nd - William A. West, Wwest News Service, "Comforted"
3rd - Lisa Scalfaro , Record Courier, "Bear On the Run"

Judges comments: Slim pickings, but some good moments that are always fleeting in breaking news situations.

General News
1st - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "Honor Flight"
2nd - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Homecoming"
3rd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "iPhone 5"
HM - Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch, "Obama Rally"

Judges comments:Honor flight gives a different, graphic perspective of a typical moment. iPhone guy is a nice moment in what is typically a dry situation (though no names from the employees even with their genius name tags? Come on Apple. The homecoming photo is seen a lot, but those situations are always chaotic and a good, quiet moment in the chaos is a good moment. We wished the Obama photo was shot tighter to give us just those intense reactions in the center their own chance to stand out, but we see what was being done in showing the overall scene. Just wish he was reaching to shake a hand or something. Was surprised that there wasn't more political stuff, but we're not complaining.

Feature
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Juggler"
2nd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Pool Work"
3rd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Wittenberg Sunset"
HM - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Rope Course"
HM - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Sister Mary Jacinta"

Judges comments: Fun section, a challenge but a fun one. The juggling photo gave a good perspective with a clean background and great movement, not to mention the danger factor for the shooter. The pool season is a great feature and almost makes you want to wish the summer was starting again. Again it was another simple and clean shot that we see all the time but we got to see differently. The sunset was beautiful and the light falling on the people was great. Rope course seemed a bit overtoned for the situation and a bit dead on, though it was nicely executed. We think if the Sisters of St. Michael photo should have been in general news, but was a fun photo with good emotion.

Sports Action
1st - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "One-handed Catch"
2nd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Flashing a Smile"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Cross Country Invitational"
HM - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Touchdown Pass"

Judges comments: Good stuff y'all. Some great football catches that makes everyone's Friday night easier. The one handed catch has everything going for it. A perfect moment, a terrific background that seems devoid of emotion, thanks to the soul-less video cameras, but is pleasantly broken up by the one guy's face that is saying everything we're thinking, not to mention where the photo was taken from added to overall uniqueness of this photo. The touchdown photo is another great moment caught, really helps change a typical photo to a better photo. Beautiful light makes everything better. Great range of shadow, light and color on the cross country runners. Touchdown is a great catch that really shows the moment, a shot we all want on Fridays.

Sports Feature
1st - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Missed Shot"
2nd - Tim Revell, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Pickerington Takes the Field"
3rd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "South Cross Country"
HM - Tim Revell, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Groveport Soccer"

Judges comments: Missed makes for a great loss photo from the game. Good composition and moment. "Yea" is taken from one of those moments that we all shoot before a football game, though this one seemed to have more pop, due to the player jumping through the banner up top, really helped it. Race end is a good moment, but one we see a lot of, if everyone else was gasping for air it'd add to it, but we get it that this isn't your typical XC guy. Header would have been better if it was cropped into a horizontal, but good action, which makes us think this should have been in action--where it also would have received an HM due to the crop.

Portrait
1st - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Daniel Webb"
2nd - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Lex Wexner"
3rd - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Annie Leibovitz"

Judges comments: Treesfelled gives us a great understanding of the story and the composition engages us. Wexner is playful and has great emotion for who he is, wish it was toned a bit more, but good moment and depth. "We need you to take a portrait of Annie Leibovitz today," sounds like tricky assignment, but one that looks like was a fun one. We were distracted by some background elements like the power outlet and how her shoes looked quite big, but the composition and emotion are nice.

Story
1st - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Urban Meyer"
2nd - Lisa Scalfaro , Record Courier, "Bear On the Run"

Judges comments: Looks like Urban Meyer gave yall some great access and you made the best of it with some genuine moments and nice candids. The bear story is simple and tells most of the story of the day.

Illustration
1st - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Biodynamic Burger"
2nd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Pasta"
3rd - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch, "Mocktail"

Judges comments: We wanted to eat that burger which means you did what you were supposed to--make the viewer hungry. Also it's beautifully lit and styled--simple. Perfect Papsta (see cutline) was a clever way for a subject that is somewhat tricky to photograph without making it look too busy. The surrounding dry pasta helped bring us in. The mocktail looks great on a hot summer day, though we'd prefer a real cocktail. Again, fulfilled the assignment of seducing the reader, we want a drink and after judging this contest that's just what we're going to do!

Judges: Gavin Jackson and Rebecca Ducker/Florence (SC) Morning News.

October 2012 Clip Contest Results

Winning images

Spot News
1st - Bill Lackey/Springfield News-Sun, "Car Fire"
2nd - Bill Lackey/Springfield News-Sun, "Wind Blown Sign"
3rd - Thomas Levinson/The Columbus Dispatch, "Pedestrain Accident"

Judge's comments: First place easily rose to the top. A great job of seeing by the photographer and catching an action through what looks like a dramatic scene.

General News
1st - Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer, "Presidential Sighting"
2nd - Eamon Queeney/The Columbus Dispatch, "Ignored"
3rd - Tom Dodge/The Columbus Dispatch, "Circleville Pumpkin Show"
HM - Barbara J. Perenic/Springfield News-Sun, "Paul Ryan"
HM - William A. West/Freelance, "Candleight Vigil"

Judge's comments: This was my favorite category. First place had a great moment and emotion.

Feature
1st - Eric Albrecht/The Columbus Dispatch, "Halloween"
2nd - Eamon Queeney/The Columbus Dispatch, "Tag"
3rd- Chris Russell/The Columbus Dispatch, "Watching the Marathon"
HM - Eric Albrecht/The Columbus Dispatch, "Homecoming Game"
HM - Fred Squillante/The Columbus Dispatch, "Facial"

Judge's comments: Love the quirkiness of this photo! It's clean, has great color and symmetry.

Sports Action
1st - Barbara J. Perenic/Springfield News-Sun, "Football Flip"
2nd - Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, "Tackle"
3rd - Eamon Queeney/The Columbus Dispatch, "State Golf"
HM - Scott Heckel/The Repository, "Helmet Separation "
HM - Adam Cairns/The Columbus Dispatch, "Blocked Punt"

Judge's comments: The first photo has the kind of moment that has most photographers chimp for while holding their breath. While this isn't the cleanest shot, it's great action and I appreciate that expression on the refs face!

Sports Feature
1st - Barbara J. Perenic/Springfield News-Sun, "Winning Goal"
2nd - Scott Heckel/The Repository, "Spider Man"
3rd - Tom Dodge/The Columbus Dispatch, "Shuffleboard"
HM - Lorrie Cecil/ThisWeek Newspapers, "Whitehall Football"
HM - Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer, "Lou Groza Field"

Judge's comments: Tight and clean jube shot with decent reaction by the players.

Portrait
1st - Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer, "Michael Symon"
2nd - Jonathan Quilter/The Columbus Dispatch, "Bug Collection"
3rd - Eric Albrecht/The Columbus Dispatch, "Vampires and Religion"
HM - Tom Dodge/The Columbus Dispatch, "Face Jugs"

Judge's comments: First place photo was a nice and clean portrait and captured the personality of the subject. It made a man holding a giant clever and a huge hunk of raw meat seem friendly!

Story
1st - Lynn Ischay/The Plain Dealer, "Romantic Fiction Writing Convention"
2nd - Chris Russell/The Columbus Dispatch, "Columbus Marathon"
3rd - Eamon Queeney/The Columbus Dispatch, "Columbus Marathon"
HM - Jonathan Quilter/The Columbus Dispatch, "Barack Obama"
HM - Jonathan Quilter/The Columbus Dispatch, "Mitt Romney"

Judge's comments: First place winner had decent variety and some good moments! Would have loved to see that ending frame in the features category.

November 2012 Clip Contest Results

Winning images

Feature
1st place - Eamon Queeney/The Columbus Dispatch, "Scuba Diving Santa"
2nd place - Lynn Ischay/The Plain Dealer, "A Veteran's Tears"
3rd place - Lynn Ischay/The Plain Dealer, "Turkey Tips the Scales"
HM - Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer, "Bird Bath"

Judge's comments: This category was the most debated. The first place image in features gave us a new and fun view of santa with good color and a nice moment. The second place image rose above the third because of it's emotion, clean back ground, and soft light as well as lens choice. The third place image caught all of our attention as being a quick read with humor and a unique perspective.

General News
1st place - Thomas Levinson/The Columbus Dispatch, "Mayor Coleman"
2nd place - Adam Cairns/The Columbus Dispatch, "Sherrod Brown"
3rd place - Tom Dodge/The Columbus Dispatch, "Flu Shot"
HM - Fred Squillante/The Columbus Dispatch, "Keys to the Election"

Judge's comments: The first place image stood out among the entries with excellent execution of an often mundane daily assignment. Second place had a good genuine moment and was well framed with the element of confetti. Third place had a lot of expression good layering drawing your eye through several levels.

Spot News
1st place - Scott Heckel/The Repository, "Shoting Scene"
2nd place - Scott Heckel/The Repository, "Shooting Reaction"
3rd place - Scott Heckel/The Repository, "Bus Accident"

Judge's comments: Though this category had few images to choose from, we felt the first place image had the best composition while including a moment of high emotion. Second place had  good interaction and emotion but was not as quick a read and not as clean.

Portrait
1st place - Chris Russell/The Columbus Dispatch, "Mobile Vintage Clothing"
2nd place - Sam Greene/The Morning Journal, "Wilkins Santiago"
3rd place - Eamon Queeney/The Columbus Dispatch, "Stolen Car"
HM - Eric Albrecht/The Columbus Dispatch, "Bourbon Red"

Judge's comments: The first place image again stood out in the category as a clear first. It is well lit, composed and tells a story with a quick read. Second was a very well lit and clean image. Third place has nice light and perspective.

Sports Action
1st place - Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, "Blocked Shot"
2nd place - Chris Parker/ThisWeek Newspapers, "Football Flip"
3rd place - Chris Russell/The Columbus Dispatch , "Pass Broken Up"
HM - Thomas Levinson/The Columbus Dispatch, "Table Tennis"

Judge's comments: First place had great peak action with clean separation and composition, overhead is often difficult in women's basketball. Second image shows great timing and an interesting moment yet unfortunately slightly front focused. Third place had good clean peak action.

Sports Feature
1st place - Eamon Queeney/The Columbus Dispatch, "Post Season Dejection"
2nd place - Tim Revell/ThisWeek Newspapers, "Overtime Loss"
3rd place - Tom Dodge/The Columbus Dispatch, "Wii bowling"

Judge's comments: First place image stood out as the most story telling, it was well composed with good low angle and layering with the celebration in the background. Second place was another story telling image that captured emotion yet we felt could have used a tighter crop. Third was a funny and unexpected moment and an unusual sports image which made it stand out, unfortunately back focused.

Story
1st place - Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, "Troubled Waters"
2nd place - Jonathan Quilter/The Columbus Dispatch, "Barack Obama"
3rd place - Thomas Levinson/The Columbus Dispatch, "Youth Deer Hunt"

Judge's comments: This was a difficult category to award. All three should have had a tighter edit. Troubled water rose above the campaign because of its diversity of images each telling a unique aspect of a broad story. The campaign images had some nice moments but not enough variety. Third had some nice images but really needed to be edited tighter.

Judges: from the Sioux falls Argus Leader; Elisha Page, Emily Spartz, Jay Pickthorn and Melissa Sue Gerrits.

December 2012 Clip Contest Results

Winning images

Spot News
1st - Eamon Queeney, The Columbus Dispatch, "Water Main Break"
2nd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "House Fire"
3rd - Thomas Levinson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Fire Investigation"

Judges comments: Nice moment.

General News
1st - Thomas Levinson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Wreaths Across America"
2nd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Graduation Celebration"
3rd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Happy Graduate"
HM - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch , "Bus Station"

Judges comments: 1st place is a nice moment and tight, clean photo. 2nd place has lots of great energy. 3rd place would have been improved through cropping. HM is a nice idea for a potentially really boring image.

Feature
1st- Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, "Reading Challenge"
2nd -Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Serpent Mound"
3rd - Eamon Queeney, The Columbus Dispatch, "Village Lights"
HM - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, "Nutcracker "

Judges comments: 1st place made us both say, “wow!” A nice shot from a hectic moment. The composition couldn’t be better. It just barely beat out 2nd place, which was also a wonderfully-seen photo of a quiet moment. The 3rd place shooter was either rewarded for patience or was extremely lucky. Either way, it was very nice but the technical standard should have been just a touch higher. The HM photo was a nice moment with good composition.

Sports Action
1st - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "Upended"
2nd - Scott Heckel, The Repository, "Incomplete"
3rd - Barbara J. Perenic, Springfield News-Sun, "Loose Ball"
HM - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Rebound Battle"

Judges comments: The first and second place photos were simply well-composed and properly cropped moments of peak action. 3rd place was a good moment, but the color was a bit off. HM was great timing, but a little boring, even with great facial expressions from the players.

Sports Feature
1st - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Playoff Loss"
2nd - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer, "Harlem Globetrotters"
3rd - Lorrie Cecil, ThisWeek Newspapers, "Battle of Dublin"HM

Judges comments: First place was a standout in an otherwise uninspiring group of entries. A nice angle that tells the story.

Portrait
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Laren Tatter"
2nd - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch, "Unsolved Murder"
3rd - Eamon Queeney, The Columbus Dispatch, "Gary Jones"
HM - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch , "Adam VanLuit"
HM - Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch, "Zach Holmes"

Judges comments: The first three were really close. All had technical excellence. 1st place stood out - A great personality shining through in what could have been a very boring portrait at home. The lighting design on 2nd place let the viewer know, right away, that the subject is in law enforcement. Great expression on 3rd place. HM #1 could have been tighter, and the face was too hot. HM #2 was a nice concept, but the execution left little room for personality. Why not a shot a little before or after, when we would be able to see more of his face?

Picture Story
1st - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch , "Sculptor"
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch, "Incomplete"
3rd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch, "Body Surfing Brutus"

Judges comments: The edit could have been tighter, but selective focus and a great eye for detail elevated this story. Also, the photographer made sure we could pick the subject out of a lineup, which is not always the case.

Illustration
1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "La Framboise Fabuleuse"
2nd - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch, "Forever Green"
3rd - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer, "Lemon Cheesecake"

Judges comments: 1st place showed a sophisticated sense of composition and wonderful light use. Just enough depth of field, too. 2nd place was nicely executed, but could have been a touch more dynamic. Love the use of the red chopsticks for color contrast, though. Watch for wrinkles in the background fabric - there wasn’t quite enough for it to seem intentional. 3rd place had great texture and lighting, but just a little too small a depth of field. It makes one feel as if you are suddenly going blind, not a comforting sensation.

Judges: From The Jounral Gazette in Fort Wayne Indiana, Swikar Patel and . Lara Neel

2012 Final Point Standings

1st - Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer - 1224
2nd - Kyle Robertson, The Columbus Dispatch - 1194
3rd - Eric Albrecht, The Columbus Dispatch - 964
4th - Jonathan Quilter, The Columbus Dispatch -824
5th - Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun - 754
6th - Scott Heckel, The Repository - 664
7th - Barbara Perenic, Springfield News-Sun - 654
8th - Fred Squillante, The Columbus Dispatch - 614
9th - Chris Russell, The Columbus Dispatch - 562
10th - Eamon Queeney, The Columbus Dispatch - 482
11th - Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch - 424
12th - Adam Cairns, ThisWeek Newspapers - 414
13th - Tom Dodge, The Columbus Dispatch - 384
14th - Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer - 372
15th - William West, Freelance - 246
16th - Lorrie Cecil - ThisWeek Newspapers - 234
17th - Chris Parker, ThisWeek Newspapers - 232
18th - Tom Levinson, The Columbus Dispatch - 206
19th - Joel Hawksley, Ohio University - 142
20th - Neal C. Lauron, The Columbus Dispatch -136
21st - Tim Revell, Freelance - 106
22nd - Shari Lewis, The Columbus Dispatch - 98
23rd - Karen Schiely, Akron Beacon Journal - 84
24th - Lisa Scalfaro, Record Courier - 72
25th - Patti Schaeffer, The Lisbon) Morning Journal - 56
26th - Jeff Hinckley, The Columbus Dispatch - 48
27th - Warren Dillaway, The (Ashtabula) Star Beacon - 44
28th - Sam Greene, The (Lorain) Morning Journal - 42
29th -  Andy Morrison, The Blade - 32
         - Phil Masturzo, Akron Beacon Journal - 32