2023 ONPA  Annual Contest Winners

George A. Smallsreed, Jr. Photographer of the Year (Small Market)
1st – Andrew Dolph, The Times Reporter
Award of Excellence – Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun

George A. Smallsreed, Jr. Photographer of the Year (Large Market)
1st – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade
2nd – Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch
3rd – Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch

Chuck Scott Student Photographer of the Year Award
1st – Loriene Perera, Ohio University

Larry Fullerton Photojournalism Scholarship
1st – Zoe Cranfill, Ohio University
2nd – Olivia Lutz, Ohio University

James R. Gordon Ohio Understanding Award
No entries

Best of Show
Andrew Dolph, The Times Reporter, “Junior Hog Showmanship”

Monthly Clip Contest Photographer of the Year
1st – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade
2nd – Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch
3rd –  Rebecca Benson, The Blade

Feature
1st – Andrew Dolph, The Times Reporter, “Junior Hog Showmanship”
2nd – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “Horse”
3rd – Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch, “Pickleball”
Award of Excellence – Liz Dufour, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Fritz Preens”
Award of Excellence – Loriene Perera, Ohio University, “Holi”
Award of Excellence – Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, “Baby Races”

Feature Picture Story
1st – Michael Blackshire, Ohio University, “Tablertown Psalms”
2nd – Michael Blackshire, Ohio University, “See You When I See You”
3rd – Loriene Perera, Ohio University, “Symphony of Soil”

General News
1st – Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, “Flag Retirement”
2nd – Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, “Redistricting Commission”
3rd – Rebecca Benson , The Blade, “Vigil”
Award of Excellence – Adam Cairns , The Columbus Dispatch, “Issue 1”
Award of Excellence – Andrew Dolph, The Times Reporter, “A Statement of Remorse”
Award of Excellence – Kareem Elgazzar, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Regal Theater Development”

Illustration
1st – Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, “Polpo”
2nd – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “Sandwich”
3rd – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “Pumpkin Seeds”
Award of Excellence – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “Mocktail”

News Picture Story
1st – Andrew Dolph, The Times Reporter, “Tuscarawas Valley Bus Tragedy”
2nd – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “UAW Strike”
3rd – Jonathan Aguilar, The Blade, “Tornado”

Pictorial
1st – Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch, “Impound Lot”
2nd – Adam Cairns , The Columbus Dispatch, “Sturgeon Supermoon”
3rd – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “Mills Race”
Award of Excellence – Bill Lackey, Springfield News-Sun, “Barn Shadows”
Award of Excellence – Kurt Steiss, The Blade, “Toledo Hedges”

Portrait Personality
1st – Andrew Dolph, The Times Reporter, “‘Sugar Dre’ Donovan”
2nd – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “Tattoos”
3rd – Kareem Elgazzar, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Ted Gantz”
Award of Excellence – Isaac Ritchey, The Blade, “Holi Toledo”
Award of Excellence – Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, “Fireworks Aftermath”
Award of Excellence – Brooke LaValley, The Columbus Dispatch, “Emergency Benefits End”

Ron Kuntz Sports Photographer of the Year
1st – Erik Schelkun, Elsestar Images
2nd – Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch
3rd – Isaac Ritchey, The Blade
Award of Excellence – Rebecca Benson, The Blade

Sports Action
1st – Sam Greene, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Dragged”
2nd – Jeff Lange, Akron Beacon Journal, “Safe at Second”
3rd – Jeremy Wadsworth, The Blade, “Hair”
Award of Excellence – Isaac Ritchey, The Blade, “Takedown”
Award of Excellence – Jeff Lange, Akron Beacon Journal, “Outfield Collsion”
Award of Excellence – Sam Greene, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “For The Win”

Sports Feature
1st – Andrew Dolph, The Times Reporter, “State Champs”
2nd – Erik Schelkun, Elsestar Images, “Warmups”
3rd – Kurt Steiss, The Blade, “Anthony Wayne Band”
Award of Excellence – Kareem Elgazzar, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Taking the Field”
Award of Excellence – Rebecca Benson, The Blade, “Goal”
Award of Excellence – Sam Greene, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Damar Hamlin”

Sports Picture Story
1st – Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch, “Ryder Cup”
2nd – Jeff Lange, Akron Beacon Journal, “Girls State Wrestling”
3rd – Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch, “Marvin Harrison Jr.”

Spot News
1st – Marshall Gorby , Dayton Daily News, “Storm Drain Capture”
2nd – Adam Cairns , The Columbus Dispatch, “SWAT”
3rd – Adam Cairns , The Columbus Dispatch, “Shell Casings”
Award of Excellence – Andrew Dolph , The Times Reporter, “Brush Fire”
Award of Excellence – Marshall Gorby , Dayton Daily News, “Piglets”

Feature Video
1st – Doral Chenoweth, The Columbus Dispatch, “Gender Affirming Surgery at Age 79”

Judge’s comments: Found this to be the most intriguing video in the category. The character’s story is fascinating and a little heartbreaking. The access was impressive, but the video work was a little jerky. Journalists are tired of hearing it, but it could have used a tighter edit.

Sports Video
1st – Doral Chenoweth, The Columbus Dispatch, “Old Fashioned Burnout Party”

Judge’s comments: This video was fun. Some solid characters. The editing was a little choppy and maybe some of the sequences were too long, but overall it was a good time.

Documentary Video
1st – Adam Cairns, The Columbus Dispatch, “Jack Hanna’s Long Goodbye”

Judge’s comments: Nice story on a local (and national) treasure. Allowing his wife to narrate the story was a good choice and you could experience a lot of what she was going through. It wasn’t just a story about him. The amazing still images of Hanna interspersed throughout the story really were the cherry on top.

Team Video 
1st –  The Columbus Dispatch, “80 Hours of Gun Violence”

Judge’s comments: Although a bit long, entry had some good storytelling. The access granted was commendable as was the use of video from other sources

Contest judges

Craig Ruttle

Craig has been a professional photojournalist since 1980, beginning in Sayre, Pa., then moving eastward through various towns throughout the State of New York, eventually landing in New York City. He also worked for a stint as photo editor and Assistant Director of Photography at the Cincinnati Enquirer – transferring later to the role of acting chief photographer.

Covering everything from hometown happenings, local sports, to major league sporting events over the last 16 years, he has also taken up coverage of politics and international issues such as the refugee crisis in the Middle East, Europe, in addition to migration issues there and in North America.

The importance of working within communities at small circulation papers is just as important as working in larger markets as to how these disciplines help form the important underpinnings of the best possible execution of our profession.

He continues to cover major news in NYC and the United States broadly, but is leaning towards spending more time with long term projects.

Kevin Clark

Kevin graduated from the University of Washington in 2000. Go DAWGS! It was there, where he grew to love photography and more specifically photojournalism. He crisscrossed the country five times, interning at various large market newspapers from The Seattle Times, The Times-Picayune, The Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel and The Oregonian before landing his  first full-time staff position as a photojournalist with The Washington Post in 2001.

He returned to the Pacific Northwest in 2009, freelancing, shooting wedding and various other jobs before joining The Daily Herald, formally The Everett Herald, in 2014. In 2022, Kevin returned to where he got his start joining the staff of Seattle’s largest and award-winning newspaper in October 2022.

Kelly Jordan

Kelly has been a visual journalist since 1989, where she began as a part-time photojournalist for the Sanford Herald in Sanford, Florida while attending college. Throughout her career, she has been involved in many aspects of visual journalism from being a staff photographer, to being a newsroom leader in video production and eventually to photo and multimedia editing. She has worked for the Florida Times Union, USA Today, and was a Multimedia Photo Editor and drone pilot at the Detroit Free Press. Recently, she moved into her current role as a Video Production Specialist for the Navy at the Fleet Readiness Center Southeast in Jacksonville, Florida.

Denny Simmons

Denny has been making pictures and getting paid for it since landing his first job at the Jacksonville (Ill.) Journal-Courier after graduation from Mizzou in ’93. Before that, he did a six-year stint in the U.S. Navy repairing missile radars. He has worked for “photography friendly” newspapers his entire career. Simmons was a photo editor at the St. Joseph (Mo.) News-Press, picture editor at the Waukegan (Ill.) News-Sun; “visuals content coach” at both the Courier & Press in Evansville, Ind., and The Gleaner in Henderson, Ky.

Currently serving as Deputy Director of Photography at The Tennessean. Simmons and his staff continue to fight the good fight for the telling of stories with pictures. It is never easy to find the time to invest in good storytelling, but he believes the time can be found if the desire is strong enough. 

He was recognized as National Press Photographers Association’s “Best of Photojournalism” 2021 Newspaper Picture Editor of the Year – Runner-up (Less than 100,000 circulation; 2008 Photographer of the Year (smaller markets): 2018 POY Runner-Up; E.W. Scripps Hall of Fame 2011 for Photojournalism; and College Photographer of the Year – 1993. Simmons is a strong believer in maintaining balance in his life, so when he isn’t working, he can usually be found chasing after his wife of 30 years, Penny. Skateboards and fishing poles are always close-at-hand in case Simmons ever comes upon any smooth ‘crete or good water.