Northwest – September 2019 – Photo Story/Essay

Judges Comments

First place was well shot and had good storytelling images. Great moments, intimacy; loved the scene-setter opening and the football detail ender. Second place was a lovely and touching story about their relationship, but we felt like the 8th and 9th pictures (Bob smiling and the noodles) as well as the last photo of her moving to college were unnecessary and brought down the overall story. A tighter edit would have elevated this story, but kudos to the photographer for finding such a great story. Third place had some good storytelling moments, but you lost us on the 5th photo (theater performance) and the portrait at the end. We understand the impulse to tie this visually with the fight for immigrant rights, but at its core, this is a story about Armando and his family. Wish the photographer had been able to get more moments with Armando and Athena, or other members of the family.

Judges: Tim Tai/The Philadelphia Inquirer, Heather Khalifa/The Philadelphia Inquirer, David Maialetti/The Philadelphia Inquirer