Dec INPA Clip Contest Results

January 22, 2020February 24, 2020 Web Master

Cream of the Crop

Judges

Sarah Gordon/The Day

Winners

Feature 1st Place 50 Points
Photographer: Michael Caterina, South Bend Tribune
Image:f_63-tree
Judges Comments:
In a really strong category this stood out immediately. The perfect combination of things (light weirdly high temperatures fake snowballs) and the photographers eye of angle, getting a different side view of the kid jumping, getting a really nice sense of time and place, make for a dream feature photo.

Feature 2nd Place 40 Points
Photographer: Samantha Owens, Evansville Courier & Press
Image:f_96-sillydance
Judges Comments:
This stood out amongst some great Nutcracker photos offered in this months contest, and then you read the cutline and realize it’s a great story as well not just a cute kid dancing. A quicker shutter speed to really freeze those hands and maybe a tighter crop to take out the partial girl on the right would have helped here.

Feature 3rd Place 30 Points
Photographer: Kelly Lafferty, Kokomo Tribune
Image:f_57-dog
Judges Comments:
The tight crop of the teachers reaction and the puppy snuggle really works here, in a scene that I’m sure with overwhelmed with cute puppies and great faces.

Feature HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Denny Simmons, Courier & Press
Image:f_78-cartkid
Judges Comments:
Many other months in many other places this would have placed much higher. I love the different angle, and offhand moment from the cops shopping with kids gimme but wish it had more context.

General_News HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Michael Caterina, South Bend Tribune
Image:gn_63-funeral
Judges Comments:
We all know how hard funerals, especially military funerals are to shoot and that getting the trust of the family and access is most of the job. And I appreciate the work you put in to be there for this moment. However I wish you had done a little more with it. The exposure is a little off (thanks to that lovely canopy) but the highlights are way too blown. I wish you had done something more, even if you couldn’t move your feet then do something with that great peak of a reflection of the flag on the casket starting to come through or pick up a longer lens to focus more on the faces (especially the individual on the right)

General_News 1st Place 50 Points
Photographer: Denny Simmons, Courier & Press
Image:gn_78-hug
Judges Comments:
A great moment from a routine assignment, this is what every editor dreams of you coming back with. After the pen signing before the other stuff the real moment and emotion of what’s happening for these people. In good light and illustrating exactly where they are and what the situation may be beyond the signs and balloons and flags that are hard to work around.

General_News 2nd Place 40 Points
Photographer: Denny Simmons, Courier & Press
Image:gn_78-shoes
Judges Comments:
A great moment from a I’m sure yearly assignment. The framing of the focus on the kid works but it’s not so creative and tight you can’t tell the situation without reading the cutline.

General_News 3rd Place 30 Points
Photographer: Michael Caterina, South Bend Tribune
Image:gn_63-protest
Judges Comments:
A good argument for continued coverage of meetings (something I haven’t done in a long long time and lots of newsrooms I’m sure can’t afford the time and resources to.) You have to move quick on your feet for this, something I’m sure came out of nowhere and was over as soon as it began. Do I wish the shutter speed was a bit quicker and you were standing a few feet to the right, yes, but I’m sure that you wish that too.

Multiple_Entry 1st Place 50 Points
Photographer: Kaitlynn Sullivan, Dubois County Herald
Image:m_132-projectwarm01
Judges Comments:
There were multiple entries in this category but this is really the only one that tells a story and tells it well. Just because you have more than one photo from something like putting up a Christmas tree or free dental work doesn’t make it a story. There’s potential there but you still need to do the work.
There are too many frames here, a tighter edit would really really help the good images get a little lost. And some of the frames need some basic exposure and focus work (like this one) but there’s a good story hiding in here.

Portraits 1st Place Cream of the Crop 60 Points
Photographer: Kaitlynn Sullivan, Dubois County Herald
Image:p_132-smokebreak
Judges Comments:
Portraits are all about personality and this one has it in spades. Lot’s of photos were easy outs in this category just because they were miscatagorized, just because it’s a photo of a single person doesn’t mean it’s a portrait. This offhand moment in good lighting when I’m sure a portrait wasn’t required or expected shows the most personality in the bunch.

Portraits 2nd Place 40 Points
Photographer: Marlena Sloss, The Herald
Image:p_100-tomatoplant
Judges Comments:
The lighting and vertical framing really works here, the lines of the ladders and plant really bring it home for a nice visual.

Portraits 3rd Place 30 Points
Photographer: Nikolas S Frazier, Journal & Courier
Image:p_131-housing
Judges Comments:
Illustrating someone who doesn’t live where she’s paid rent is a hard assignment but this makes it a really strong visual.

Portraits HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Tim Bath, Kokomo Tribune
Image:p_54-vet
Judges Comments:
A good visual but I wish we knew more about the man and who he was. Is he a veteran? Where did he serve? Had to read cutline a few times to even learn his name, why is that last? Should lead “Veteran ____” and then tell me more about him in the second graph, not the event, to be a portrait.

Portraits HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Jeremy Hogan, Freelance
Image:p_88-aztec
Judges Comments:
A “take a photo of the person wearing the cool thing ata this event and call it a portrait” photo but it’s a a good one. Would have played stronger if his face was more tact and it had a moment.

Sports_Action 1st Place 50 Points
Photographer: Jenna Watson, Indianapolis Star
Image:sa_83-bucs-leap
Judges Comments:
Jumping dives are a frequent scene in the NFL but this height over the safety makes you stop and appreciate the athleticism of these athletes. Great capture.

Sports_Action 2nd Place 40 Points
Photographer: Michael Caterina, South Bend Tribune
Image:sa_63-rebound
Judges Comments:
The golden rule of sports action- faces and the ball. The faces are the hard part of that and this has some great ones, only helped by the good cropping and framing.

Sports_Action 3rd Place 30 Points
Photographer: Joe Garza, Tribune-Star
Image:sa_80-pull
Judges Comments:
I like this but I want to like it more, it seems a little after the fact. Like the untangling of him getting stuck in his helmet, I think what happened to get them in this position would be a first place photo.

Sports_Action HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: AJ Mast, Independent Photojournalist
Image:sa_1-intercept
Judges Comments:
This is good, a tighter crop would help a lot, just not different enough of a scene to place.

Sports_Action HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Kelly Lafferty, Kokomo Tribune
Image:sa_57-reach
Judges Comments:
I like this, the different angle really works. could use some major toning and cropping help.

Sports_Feature 1st Place 50 Points
Photographer: Kelly Lafferty, Kokomo Tribune
Image:sf_57-celebration
Judges Comments:
Nice capture of not just the elation of winning but the downfall of losing (and the exhaustion of both )

Sports_Feature 2nd Place 40 Points
Photographer: Kelly Lafferty, Kokomo Tribune
Image:sf_57-win
Judges Comments:
Focusing on whats in front of you and not the gimme shot of guys in the air in the background is a really good choice and really works here.

Sports_Feature 3rd Place 30 Points
Photographer: Kale Wilk, The Times of Northwest Indiana
Image:sf_99-charge
Judges Comments:
Great emotion, I wish you had shot a little bit lower getting her full body and not the space above her head but as is the usual with sports photos.

Sports_Feature HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Jeremy Hogan, Freelance
Image:sf_88-foul
Judges Comments:
Good emotion

Sports_Feature HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Kaitlynn Sullivan, Dubois County Herald
Image:sf_132-tunnel
Judges Comments:
I really like this, the light the framing, but it only really works in a moment. “Two boys walking” needs a little more to be an amazing feature, what does this hallway look like after a win? After a loss? Before the game energy?

Spot_News HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Tim Bath, Kokomo Tribune
Image:sn_54-crash
Judges Comments:
I wish the framing of this showed a little more than the plane. We did like this lots more than the same (?) plane in the dark of night with no action or context though

Spot_News 1st Place 50 Points
Photographer: Jeremy Hogan, Freelance
Image:sn_88-firecat
Judges Comments:
One to prove the, don’t forget to look away from the fire rule.
There were lots of flashy flames and torn up cars in this month’s submissions but they fell flat to images that showed emotion (even if it was a cat) with good composition and proper exposure and being in focus. Spot news doesn’t excuse for what makes a good photo.

Spot_News 2nd Place 40 Points
Photographer: Michael Caterina, South Bend Tribune
Image:sn_63-test
Judges Comments:
This took a read (and the caption could be expanded) but visualizing a power outage is a hard one and this really really works. Good thinking, good framing, great photo.

Spot_News 3rd Place 30 Points
Photographer: Jeremy Hogan, Freelance
Image:sn_88-burning
Judges Comments:
Not just relying on the flashy flames to make the photo here but good framing and context.

Spot_News HM Place 10 Points
Photographer: Jeremy Hogan, Freelance
Image:sn_88-crash
Judges Comments:
Not the newsiest or timeliness photo of the bunch but you made the light and scene work really really well