The Ohio News Photographers Association (ONPA) recently released its 2019 ONPA Pictures of the Year, and among the winners are several Ohio University Visual Communications students and alumni.
Fifty-one visual journalists from across the state submitted over 750 entries in the 69th annual news photography contest.
OHIO student Gaelen Morse won the Chuck Scott Student Photographer of the Year award. OHIO student Madeleine Hordinski placed second.
Madeleine Hordinski and Alexandria Skowronski, both from Ohio University, were recipients of the Larry Fullerton Photojournalism Scholarship. Hordinski placed first and will receive $3,100. Skowronski was the runner-up and will receive $2,100. The Larry Fullerton Photojournalism Scholarship was established at The Dayton Foundation through contributions from Larry Fullerton’s family and friends to assist students pursuing careers in photojournalism. Larry Fullerton was a long-time member of ONPA and both a photojournalist and assistant managing editor of the Hamilton Journal-News.
The James R. Gordon Ohio Understanding Award was awarded to Erin Burk from Ohio University for her entry “Serenity Grove,” a story about a women’s addiction residential recovery center based in Athens.
“With this new round of honors, our VisCom students and alumni continue to make us proud,” Scott Titsworth, dean of the Scripps College of Communication said. “With a solid foundation from VisCom, our graduates go on to be leaders in their field and we love to see what they achieve.”
The full list of winners can be found here.
Ohio University students who won:
Chuck Scott Student Photographer of the Year Award
1st – Gaelen Morse/Ohio University
2nd – Madeleine Hordinski/Ohio University
Larry Fullerton Photojournalism Scholarship
1st – Madeleine Hordinski/Ohio University
2nd – Alexandria Skowronski/Ohio University
James R. Gordon Ohio Understanding Award
1st – Erin Burk, Ohio University, “Serenity Grove”
Feature Picture Story
2nd – Gaelen Morse/Ohio University, “Farming is Life”
Product Illustration
2nd – Meagan Deanne/Ohio University, “Sweet Corn”
Sports Action
1st – Gaelen Morse/Ohio University, “Powerlift”
Sports Feature
Award of Excellence – Meagan Deanne/Ohio University, “Water Toss”
Audio Slideshow
1st – Brooke LaValley, Ohio University, “Whole and Holy”
Feature Video
3rd – Brooke LaValley, Ohio University, “Market Street Hardware”
VisCom Alumni who won:
George A. Smallsreed, Jr. Photographer of the Year (Large Market)
1st – Meg Vogel/The Cincinnati Enquirer
Monthly Clip Contest Photographer of the Year
1st – Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch
2nd – Jeremy Wadsworth/The Blade
Feature
1st – Jeremy Wadsworth/The Blade, “Bounce House”
2nd – Meg Vogel/The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Adoption Day”
Feature Picture Story
Award of Excellence – Matthew Hatcher/Freelance, “Ukraine’s Forgotten War”
General News
Award of Excellence – Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, “Sullivant”
Issue Illustration
1st – Lorrie Cecil/ThisWeek Community News, “Opioid Crisis”
News Picture Story
3rd – Meg Vogel/The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Brookville”
Pictorial
Award of Excellence – Jeremy Wadsworth/The Blade, “Bridges”
Portrait Personality
1st – Meg Vogel/The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Ballet Moves”
2nd – Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, “Grad”
Award of Excellence – Matthew Hatcher/Freelance, “Kikita”
Award of Excellence – Meg Vogel/Kaiser Health News, “LeRon”
Product Illustration
1st – Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, “Pork”
Award of Excellence – Meg Vogel/The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Ripple Wine Bar”
Ron Kuntz Sports Photographer of the Year
1st – Kyle Roberston/The Columbus Dispatch
Sports Feature
1st – Meg Vogel/The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Keeping Composure”
Award of Excellence – Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, “Praying”
Sports Picture Story
Award of Excellence – Kyle Robertson/The Columbus Dispatch, “Pelotonia”
Spot News
1st – Matthew Hatcher/Freelance, “Tornado”
Award of Excellence – Matthew Hatcher/Freelance, “Ruins of Trotwood”
Multimedia Photographer of the Year
1st – Meg Vogel, The Cincinnati Enquirer
Sports Video
1st – Meg Vogel, The Cincinnati Enquirer, “Xavier’s Unlikely Point Guard: Sister Rose Ann Fleming”
Another VisCom student, Michael Swensen, also placed first in the Photojournalism Picture Story/Series Competition for the 2019-2020 Hearst Journalism Awards Program in March.