2011 Texas Better Newspaper Contest - News Photos

Division 2
Dailies 7,000 to 99,999
1. The Daily Sentinel, Nacogdoches, photographer Andrew Rogers. Photo 1 “World Cup” Great focus. Photo 2 “Slick Roads” Excellent composition.
2. Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, photographer Zach Long. Photo 1 “Loving the moment” Awesome. Photo 2 “Escapee” Great shot.
3. The Paris News, photographer Sam Craft. Photo 1 “Stand-off” Great photo! Photo 2 “Car wreck” Wish it wasn’t so hard to see what is going on.
4. The Facts, Clute, photographer Christy Wooten. Photo 1 “Fatal blaze” Dramatic angle. Shows extent of damage well. Photo 2 “Hags” Good framing, focus. Wish it was printed bigger.

Division 3
Dailies Less Than 7,000
1. Plainview Daily Herald, photographer Richard Porter. Photo 1 “Snow” Good framing. Photo 2 “Search” Good tight focus.
2. The Banner-Press, Brenham, photographer Melissa McCaghren. Photo 1 “BSSLC” Good, candid photo. Photo 2 “Parham” Good use of framing in an otherwise uninteresting photo.
3. San Marcos Daily Record, photographer Anita Miller: “Plucker’s” No comment. Photographer Rowe Ray: “Amkon” Good photo, Shows flames, smoke, firefighters and victims well.
4. Taylor Daily Press, photographer Tricia Rosetty: “City Hall” Very innovative. Photographer Jason Schaefer: “Grain Spill” Would be better if taken from front of truck.

Division 4
Semiweeklies 4,001 or More
1. The Williamson County Sun, Georgetown, photographer Ben Trollinger. Comments for both photo 1 “Espinosa” and photo 2 “Maldonado”: Trollinger is a serious talent. Wow.
2. Wise County Messenger, Decatur, photographer Joe Duty. Photo 1 “Trapped” Crisp and dramatic. Photo 2 “A Mother’s Goodbye” Absolutely heartbreaking.
3. Beeville Bee-Picayune, photographer Jsaon Collins. Photo 1 “Bucking bronco” The expression is priceless. Photo 2 “Kiss” Good in every way. Moving and from a novel perspective.
4. Hood County News, Granbury, photographer Mary Vinson. Comments for both photo 1 “Fire” and photo 2 “Arrested”: Vinson does a great job of capturing the human element.

Division 5
Semiweeklies 4,000 or Less
1. The Terrell Tribune, photographer Michael Gresham. Photo 1 “Fly fishing” Great shot, particularly for the cover. Photo 2 “Firefighters” Interesting choice of subjects, and very interesting and atmospheric shot.
2. Copperas Cover Leader Press, photographer Tim Orwig: “Raising roof” Novel perspective and composition. Photographer Larry Hauk: “Baby/wreck” Odd juxtaposition - I liked it.
3. The Bowie News, photographer Barbara Green: “Funeral” Dignified, and nice composition. Photographer Ryan Evans: “Water catches fire” Wow - what a story!
4. The Canyon News, photographer James Barrington: “Final Piece” Great subject. Photographer Brad Raburn “Fire” Very dramatic.

Division 6
Large Weeklies
1. Fredericksburg Standard-Radio Post, photographer Lisa Treiber-Walter: “Showering kisses” Great photo! Composition is excellent. Love the faces, the expressions, the intimacy. Photographer Jessica Bailey: “Crash landing” Very dramatic. Wish shutter stopped action a little more to reduce blur.
2. Port Aransas South Jetty, photographer Dan Parker. Photo 1 “Wet ‘n Wild” Very fun picture. Very unique look at how the flood impacted locals. Good focus. Photo 2 “Mardi Gras” Not as unique, but still fun and colorful.
3. The Silsbee Bee, photographer David Lisenby. Photo 1 “Bus wreck” Focus would do better on front subjects. Photo 2 “Fire” Cutline needs name, date. Photo is excellent.
4. Park Cities People, Dallas, photographer Christina Barany: Cool, but would be improved if the motorcycle weren’t so blurred. Not date in cutline. Photographer Chris McGathey: “Vet” Good framing.

Division 7
Medium-Large Weeklies
1. Clay County Leader, Henrietta, photographer Matt Kelton. Photo 1 “Firefighter” Great photo! Perfect focus. Photo 2 “Grass fire” Good composition.
2. Westlake Picayune, Austin, photographer Dane Anderson: “Car flips” Great photo! Lots going on but not overwhelming. Sets the scene well. Photographer Ed Allen: “Problem intersection” Photo clearly and effectively illustrates issue. Great!
3. The River Cities Sunday Tribune, Marble Falls, photographer Daniel Clifton. Photo 1 “Welcome home, soldier” Great composition. Photo 2 “Mustangs rally” Good.
4. The Hamilton Herald-News, photographer Ginger Lanmon: “Fire” Very dramatic. Good framing. Reflection on firefighters is slightly distracting. Photographer Maria Weaver: “Game warden” Very personal photo. Good.

Division 8
Medium Weeklies
1. Pilot Point Post-Signal, photographer Keith Magee: “Flood” Photo shows damage well. Reproduction is a little blurry. Photographer David Lewis: “Fire” Great shot. Shows magnitude of the fire, very dramatic.
2. Lake Country Sun, Graford, photographer Mark Engebretson. Photo 1 “Heavy rains” Photo shows scope of impact very well. Reproduction is a little dark. Photo 2 “Car” Wow! Good shot. Framing and angle work well.
3. The Llano County Journal, photographer Michael Freeman. Photo 1 “Don’t look down “Very cute. Good clarity close-up. Photo 2 “Dove season” Good angle. Wish you could see more of Mabery’s face.
4. Refugio County Press, photographer Kenda Nelson. Photo 1 “Giant balloon” Great perspective on the balloon. Men are in strange positions. Photo 2 “Pot bust” Great framing!

Division 9
Small-Medium Weeklies
1. Palacios Beacon, photographer Ryan West. Photo 1 “Fire” Great composition. Photo 2 “In a rut” Vertical works well for this shot.
2.The Hometown Press, Winnie, photographer Scott Reese Willey. Photo 1 “Carnival” Captures emotion well. Photo 2 “Calf scramble” Photo stops action well, captures the struggle.
3. Mart Messenger, photographer Karla Reynolds: “Mirror image” Very creative! One photo looks greener than the other. Photographer Blake Kocian: “Football” Photo stops action well.
4. The Waller County News Citizen, Hempstead, photographer Joe Southern. Photo 1 “Vehicle fire” Great description. Photo 2 “Sheriff” Good composition.

Division 10
Small Weeklies
1. The Clarendon Enterprise, photographer Anndria Newhouse: “Shazam!” Incredible photo. Photographer Roger Estlack: “Close call” Very exciting photo. Shows seriousness of crash, yet remains tasteful.
2. The Overton Press, photographer Charlotte Heldenbrand: “Peanut brittle” Good description in cutline. Good framing. Photographer J.M. Jones: “Fire” Good framing, focus.
3. The Lindsay Letter, photographer Kathy Floyd. Photo 1 “Smelly water” Photo makes a jar of water interesting. Great! Photo 2 “Don’t go yet” Tugs at heartstrings.
4. Dripping Springs Century-News, photographer Anne Drabicky. Photo 1 “Zoo babies” Good framing. Photo 2 “Hello, H-E-B” Head and finger cut off in front. Could be improved by cropping.