Donald Winslow, Joe Torelli To Receive NPPA's Sprague Award
DURHAM, NC (November 18, 2011) – The National Press Photographers Association has announced the organization's top annual honors and awards for 2011 and NPPA's highest honor, theJoseph A. Sprague Memorial Award,has been presented to the editor of News Photographer magazine, Donald R. Winslow, and to Joe Torelli of Apple Inc.
"The theme of the nominations this year is inspiration," NPPA past president Dr. Bob Carey said. "Winners this year include professionals and teachers who took time to mentor about more than just photography. As a result, their mentees are strong in ethics, photography quality, and in mentoring the next generation of visual journalists.
Winslow, a photojournalist and editor for newspapers and Reuters during his 35 year career, has been NPPA's publications editor since 2003 when Jim Gordon retired. Torelli followed his career as a globe-trotting television photojournalist and editor for NBC News with a move into the development, sales, and marketing side of non-linear video editing technology – first for Avid Technology, and then later for Apple Inc. He had a major impact on the development and deployment of Avid's NewsCutter, as well as the implementaiton of Apple's Final Cut Pro into the broadcast market.
Established in 1949, the Sprague Award is NPPA's highest honor. It recognizes individuals who advance and elevate photojournalism by their conduct, initiative, leadership, and skill, or for unusual service or achievement beneficial to photojournalism and technological advances. It honors Joseph A. Sprague, a press technical representative for the Graflex Corporation, who is credited with designing the Big Bertha, Magic Eye, and Combat Camera for the company as well as dozens of improvements and refinements to the original Graflex Speed Graphic 4x5 camera, once the press industry standard.
(Read separate stories about their Sprague Award accomplishments: Winslow's story is here,andTorelli's story is here.)
In NPPA's other annual Honors & Recognitions, Tom Costello, chief photographer/video for the Asbury Park Press in New Jersey, is the winner of this year's Joseph Costa Award.The Costa Award is given to an individual for their outstanding initiative, leadership, and service in advancing the goals of NPPA in the tradition of Costa, NPPA's founder. Costello has served as Region 3 Director and National Secretary. In addition, he has provided AV and logistical support for nearly every NPPA event at some point over the years, including Multimedia Immersion, Convergence/Summit, the Flying Short Course, and the Northern Short Course.
Richard J. Murphy, photography editor for the Anchorage Daily News, is the winner of this year's Jim Gordon Editor of the Year Award.The Gordon Award is given to "the editor of an outstanding newspaper, magazine, video, movie, Web site, book, or other publication or broadcast that supports and promotes strong photojournalism.
Tenney Mason, of Baltimore, is the winner of this year’s Clifton C. Edom Award.Mason retired as director of photography for Patuxtent Publishing Co. in 2007. The Edom Award recognizes an individual in the tradition of Cliff Edom to inspire and motivate members of the photojournalism community to reach new heights. During Mason’s career, he and the photographers that he hired and mentored won countless awards.
Jim Veneman, Director of Visual Communication at Union University in Jackson, TN, is the winner of this year's Robin F. Garland Educator Award.Veneman received more than 30 nominations from colleagues and students. One former student said, “Simply put, he was the most influential person in directing my own career and life.”
Cortney Kintzer, director of photography and a photojournalist for KCCI-TV in Des Moines, wins this year’s John Durniak Mentor Award.The honor is awarded to an individual who has served as an outstanding mentor, either to a specific individual or to photojournalism in general. “He is just as concerned as building a culture of friendly photographers as he is getting a great story,” said one nomination. “He has taught myself and many other young photographers who have come through KCCI not only how to become a better photographer, but also how to become a better person.”
Mark Dye, NPPA's Region 2 Associate Chair, is the winner of this year's Samuel Mellor Award.The award is given to the regional associate director judged most outstanding in the performance of his or her duties. In the past year, Dye was an integral part of many NPPA events in the Northeast, including the Northern Short Course and the exhibit “9/11, Witness To Tragedy And Recovery.”
Photoshelter is being honored with NPPA's J. Winton Lemen Fellowship Awardfor creating an application that is the gold standard for independent photographers. Lemen established the photo press markets division of the Eastman Kodak Co. and served as the firm's liaison with the nation's news photographers. The award in his name recognizes advances related to technological improvements for photojournalists.
Terry Eiler, director of Ohio University’s School of Visual Communication (VisCom), is being honored with this year'sMorris Berman NPPA Citation.The Berman Citation is given to an individual for special contributions advancing the interests of photojournalism. Eiler has helped lead NPPA's Best of Photojournalism’s Newspaper Editing competition at Ohio University for years, and he recently took the helm as chairman of NPPA's annual Best of Photojournalism contest.
Rich Beckman is being honored this year with NPPA's Kenneth P. McLaughlin Award of Merit.The McLaughlin Award is given to those rendering continuing outstanding service in the interest of news photography, whether or not they are members of the profession. Beckman taught more than 30 years at University of North Carolina. Beckman and his students have won numerous awards over the span of their careers. He serves now as the Knight Chair for Visual Journalism at the University of Miami in Florida, where he launched the school’s highly regarded Master’s in Multimedia Journalism program in 2009. The New York Times has called him “a guru of new media education.”
Michelle McLoughlin is being honored with anNPPA Special Citationfor her years as chair of the Northern Short Course in Photojournalism. Her nominator said, “She works year-round to coordinate the NSC, and skillfully leads the NSC Board to be the best educational event of its kind.”
The winner of this year's Outstanding NPPA Student Chapter is the University of South Carolina in Columbia. The chapter started with one student member three years ago. Last year the group sponsored photography workshops and contests, energizing the photography community across the city.
Earlier this year, Swikar Patel of The Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne, IN, was awarded NPPA's Humanitarian Award for his actions on March 29 when he stopped to take part in the rescue of a two children trapped inside a vehicle at the scene of an auto accident.
And this year’sNPPA President’s Awardgoes to Melanie Brady Elliot.
NPPA's annual awards and honors are determined by nominations that are submitted to a committee that's chaired each year by the organization's Immediate Past President. This year's committee responsibilities fell to Dr. Bob Carey.
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