2011 Texas Better Newspaper Contest - Feature Photos

Division 2
Dailies 7,000 to 99,999
1. Laredo Morning Times, photographer Ulysses S. Romero. Photo 1 “Decked Out” dazzling excellent job. Photo 2 “Good Luck” captured a great moment.
2. Victoria Advocate, photographer Angeli Wright: “Of Noble Character” best emotion of any shot. Photographer Frank Tilley: “Festival of Sacrifice” great reproduction, awesome colors & balance.
3. The Beaumont Enterprise, photographer Pete Churton, “School of Mullet” solid shot, seen it before too many times. Photographer Giuseppe Barranco, “Dog and Lizard” great moment, odd crop and too dark.
4. The Galveston County Daily News, photographer Kevin Cox, “Booked Solid” amazing reproduction and color, but otherwise just another parade photo. Photographer Jennifer Reynolds, “Warming Up for the Rodeo” great shot, excellent reproduction, cliched.

Division 3
Dailies Less Than 7,000
1. The Herald Banner, Greenville, photographer Amber Pompa. Photo 1 “Shattered” great photo, great composition. Photo 2 “Final Day” solid, three kids break up photo well.
2. Brownwood Bulletin, photographer Steve Nash. Photo 1 “Reunion” great composition. Photo 2 “New Aquatic Center” good moment.
3. Brenham Banner Press, photographer Melissa McCaghren. Photo 1 “Carnival” good photo, too much dead space. Photo 2 “Paying Off the Bet” fun moment distracting background.
4. San Marcos Daily Record, photographer Anita Miller. Photo 1 “9-11 Remembered” good photo, OK composition. Photo 2 “Bird’s Eye Perpective” great shot, fun photo after reading the cutline.

Division 4
Semiweeklies 4,001 or More
1. Wise County Messenger, Decatur, photographer Joe Duty. Photo 1 “Raising Cayne” great family portrait. Good job. Photo 2 “Wise on the Fly” unique perspective, wonderful shot.
2. The Bastop Advertiser, photographer Terry Hagerty: “Ouch!” captured great moment. Photographer Andy Ross: “What Is That Stuff?” great emotion, solid picture.
3. The Williamson County Sun, Georgetown photographer Bryce Harper. Photo 1 “Snowfallen Angels” great perspective. Photo 2 “Way to Goose’s Heart” What is he doing to that goose? Interesting pic.
4. Hood County News, Granbury, photographer Mary Vinson. Photo 1 “Snowball” not the best composition but good timing and good emotion. Photo 2 “Ready for Play” great emotion, wonderful moment.

Division 5
Semiweeklies 4,000 or Less
1. The Terrell Tribune, photographer Don Johnson. Photo 1 “Let’s Hear It for the Band” nice perspective. Photo 2 “A Brand New Perspective” cool photo captured emotion well.
2. Kilgore News Herald, photographer Aaron May. Photo 1 “Dazzling Dancing Rangerettes” reproduction not great and image not dominant. Photo 2 “Poultry Love” great photo does everything right.
3. Andrews County News, photographer Sam Kaufman. Photo 1 “Dognapping Incident” not a great photo but follows rules of photography. Photo 2 “Special Service” similar to first photo, not much emotion.
4. Breckenridge American, photographer Rob Durham. Photo 1 “Winter Wonderland” not a great photo but nice to see a different angle. Photo 2 “Catch Air” good photo, better if wakeboard not cropped.

Division 6
Large Weeklies
1. Park Cities People, Dallas, photographer Chris McGathey: “Freshman Off to Fast Start” color off but captured good moment. Also, fold distorted face. Photographer Christina Baremy: “Dancing Shoes” Great light and color, good framing. Well done.
2. The Silsbee Bee, photographer David Lisenby: “Where There’s Smoke” interesting colors. Too bad her face is right on the fold. Photographer Gerry Dickert “First Impressions” great emotions, wonderful picture.
3. Port Aransas South Jetty, photographer Dan Parker. Photo 1 “Cold Wave” color seems muddy, solid pic. Photo 2 “Dolphin Duo” good picture, odd framing.
4. Fredericksburg Standard-Radio Post, photographer Lisa Treiber-Walter: “Hair-raising” color looks off, good emotion. Photographer Danny Hirt “A Mighty Proud Camel” good pic, arguably the best on its page.

Division 7
Medium-Large Weeklies
1. Clay County Leader, Henrietta, photographer Matt Kelton. Photo 1 “Rodeo Queen” good blur on background with focus on queen makes pic pop. Photo 2 “Somber Moments” not the best framing but a good, emotional shot.
2. Progress Times, Mission, photographer Doug Young: “Personal Trainer” solid photo but nothing special. Should be pics like this in every issue. Photographer Edwina P. Garza “Valley AIDS Council” great pic for the story it’s telling. Very emotional.
3. Frio-Nueces Current, Pearsall, photographer Dean Smith: “Long, Dusty Trail” tells a good story but boring composition. Photographer Manuel Azocar III “The Wild Ones” happy kids playing always a safe bet. Why are both of these pics hiding under the fold?
4. Lake Travis View, Austin, photographer Devin Monk. Photo 1 “Stemming the Stings” good setup for photo. Poor reproduction and placement killed it. Photo 2 “Springfest” composition only alright. No dominance on the page makes it hard to notice.

Division 8
Medium Weeklies
1. Iowa Park Leader, photographer Kevin Hamilton. Photo 1 “Runner on Bridge” great light, excellent framing, no cutline. Photo 2 “Train at Sunset” great light, great framing, great photo.
2. The Canadian Record, photographer Laurie Ezzell Brown. Photo 1 “After Storm” not the best composition but very good photo. Photo 2 “Color of Fall” crisp, clear photo with great composition.
3. The Ellis County Press, Ferris, photographer Megan Gray: “War Birds on Parade” well set up shot but harsh light on typical subject. Photographer Tia Mogged “Big Bang in the City” best reproduction I’ve seen so far.
4. Pilot Point Post-Signal, photographer Keith Magee. Photo 1 “He’s Got the Look” OK photo not the best composition. Photo 2 “A Tall Order” cute pic. Try moving around for a better angle.

Division 9
Small-Medium Weeklies
1. The Waller County News Citizen, Hempstead, photographer Joe Southern. Photo 1 “United Way Kicks Off” average photo, color looks off. Photo 2 “Slurping Up Good Times” caught a great moment.
2. The Farmersville Times, photographer David Jenkins: “Prayers Answered” caught a good moment but poorly framed. Photographer Wyndi Veigel “Celebrating Big Win” great moment, great pic, distracting cutline.
3. Palacios Beacon, photographer Ryan West. Photo 1 “Battling Smoke” good fire photo but typical. Photo 2 “Diving to the Endzone” great photo, great moment.
4. Deport Times - Blossom Times, photographer Tony Corso: “Think Basketball” good job capturing emotion of moment. Photographer Liz Irwin “Student and Snowflakes” fun picture but not very original.

Division 10
Small Weeklies
1. Dripping Springs Century-News, photographer Anne Drabicky. Photo 1 “Boot-scootin’ Good Time” made attempt to find different angle and it paid off. Photo 2 “Dorothy Martin” solid photo. Reproduction was lacking.
2. The Big Sandy & Hawkins Journal, photographer Seria Dassing. Photo 1 “Winona Christmas Parade” pay attention to where light is coming from. This would have been the best photo. Photo 2 “Chilton Cemetery” good shot, follows most rules of photography.
3. The Overton Press, photographer Charlotte Heldenbrand. Photo 1 “Ice Is Nice” great pic. Would have scored better if not submitted with second photo. Photo 2 “Kids Cheering” people like pictures of their kids in the paper. Not the best shot.
4. The Alvarado Star, photographer Christopher Amos. Photo 1 “Home Without Hope” very nice photo. Headline within photo is distracting. Photo 2 “A Rare Sighting” cutline makes photo more exciting but composition is very typical.