Picture Perfect: The joy, the horror and what the newspapers don't want to show you!
What have Colonel Gadaffi, recently deceased snooker legend Alex ‘Hurricane’ Higgins and BNP leader Nick Griffin got in common?
This unlikely trio were all photographed over the past twelve months and are currently on show at the engaging Press Photographer’s Year exhibition.
The winners of the 2010 awards, many dramatically blown up on six-foot high canvas, are drawing crowds in the National Theatre foyer on London’s South Bank and aim to celebrate to ‘noble’ profession of the humble British snapper.
Stars of both TV and the political stage take pride of place among the 119 images in the show that emerged as the pick of the crop in the eyes of this year’s jury.
And yet, as is so often the case, it is the anonymous snatched glimpse of the ordinary man that has the biggest impact and power to either shock or inspire.
Overall winner, David Bebber of the Times, snapped Libyan leader Colonel Gadaffi at a military parade, accompanied by what looks distinctly like his Venezuelan firebrand counterpart Hugo Chavez.
The image has an almost painted quality, thanks to the light reflecting from the bullet-proof glass that is shielding the ‘Tyrant of Tripoli’ from the benevolent love of his people, but for me it was not the stand-out image of this year’s collection.
The period covered by the competition (1st Jan 2009 – 28th Feb 2010) has been a period of continuing global turmoil, with the devastating earthquake in Haiti, the conflict in Afghanistan and the re-emergence of the troubles in Northern Ireland providing much of the drama on display.
War photography may seem the preserve of thrill seekers or young men desperate to make a name for themselves, but it remains one of the most powerful mediums through which to capture the full horrors of human behaviour.
From Kashmir to Kabul the effects of war on the innocent is clear to see etched onto the faces of those whose split-second terror was captured on film and wired directly into the newsroom back home.
Mother Nature’s own tragic potential for destruction is also brought home sharply by one particular image of bloody bodies stacked onto a cart awaiting burial in the aftermath of the Port-au-Prince quake.
Entrants do not have to have had their submissions published, and few outlets – if any - would have found room several such images which were so shocking that they appear unlikely to have been published by any responsible media title.
A further example from SWNS depicts a middle-aged man in the midst of a successful suicide attempt, caught midway between the River Avon and the bridge from which he has leapt.
The tragedy of a quadruple-amputee baby who was struck by meningitis in Manchester is also shown being tended in hospital by his loving parents, who clearly wish to share their pain in the hope of helping spare other families a similar fate.
Scenes from Chernobyl, Zimbabwe and North Korea all shed light on parts of the globe that often remain unseen, but it is not all doom and gloom on display.
Sporting images are always among the favourites, and the sheer joy on the face of Britain’s sole Winter Olympic medallist, Amy Williams, was a definite highlight.
As someone who has commissioned sports photography as editor of Southampton F.C.’s matchday programme, I was left underwhelmed by the remainder of sporting snaps selected by the judges, which appeared to substitute stardom for action, rather than the providing the elusive, but ultimately winning combination of the two.
Mayor of London Boris Johnson, a frightened-looking Nick Griffin and a ghostly image of since deceased Higgins also share the walls with Barack Obama and Gordon Brown, but to really get the full picture you will have to take a look for yourself.
The winners of THE PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER’S YEAR 2010 competition are on display until Sunday 19th September at the National Theatre. Open Monday - Saturday 9.30am -11pm. Admission is FREE.
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| First Prize: Live News - David Levene (The Guardian) Bodies in Haiti awaiting burial |
The winners of the 2010 awards, many dramatically blown up on six-foot high canvas, are drawing crowds in the National Theatre foyer on London’s South Bank and aim to celebrate to ‘noble’ profession of the humble British snapper.
Stars of both TV and the political stage take pride of place among the 119 images in the show that emerged as the pick of the crop in the eyes of this year’s jury.
And yet, as is so often the case, it is the anonymous snatched glimpse of the ordinary man that has the biggest impact and power to either shock or inspire.
Overall winner, David Bebber of the Times, snapped Libyan leader Colonel Gadaffi at a military parade, accompanied by what looks distinctly like his Venezuelan firebrand counterpart Hugo Chavez.
 |
| Photograph of the Year: News Folio - David Bebber (The Times) Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi |
The period covered by the competition (1st Jan 2009 – 28th Feb 2010) has been a period of continuing global turmoil, with the devastating earthquake in Haiti, the conflict in Afghanistan and the re-emergence of the troubles in Northern Ireland providing much of the drama on display.
War photography may seem the preserve of thrill seekers or young men desperate to make a name for themselves, but it remains one of the most powerful mediums through which to capture the full horrors of human behaviour.
From Kashmir to Kabul the effects of war on the innocent is clear to see etched onto the faces of those whose split-second terror was captured on film and wired directly into the newsroom back home.
Mother Nature’s own tragic potential for destruction is also brought home sharply by one particular image of bloody bodies stacked onto a cart awaiting burial in the aftermath of the Port-au-Prince quake.
Entrants do not have to have had their submissions published, and few outlets – if any - would have found room several such images which were so shocking that they appear unlikely to have been published by any responsible media title.
A further example from SWNS depicts a middle-aged man in the midst of a successful suicide attempt, caught midway between the River Avon and the bridge from which he has leapt.
The tragedy of a quadruple-amputee baby who was struck by meningitis in Manchester is also shown being tended in hospital by his loving parents, who clearly wish to share their pain in the hope of helping spare other families a similar fate.
Scenes from Chernobyl, Zimbabwe and North Korea all shed light on parts of the globe that often remain unseen, but it is not all doom and gloom on display.
Sporting images are always among the favourites, and the sheer joy on the face of Britain’s sole Winter Olympic medallist, Amy Williams, was a definite highlight.
As someone who has commissioned sports photography as editor of Southampton F.C.’s matchday programme, I was left underwhelmed by the remainder of sporting snaps selected by the judges, which appeared to substitute stardom for action, rather than the providing the elusive, but ultimately winning combination of the two.
Mayor of London Boris Johnson, a frightened-looking Nick Griffin and a ghostly image of since deceased Higgins also share the walls with Barack Obama and Gordon Brown, but to really get the full picture you will have to take a look for yourself.
The winners of THE PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER’S YEAR 2010 competition are on display until Sunday 19th September at the National Theatre. Open Monday - Saturday 9.30am -11pm. Admission is FREE.
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