A thousand words
It’s hard for a photograph to capture a place exactly as it looks to the human eye, and even more difficult for that image to encapsulate the emotion of a particular moment. Sometimes, we get lucky. Most of the time, it takes skill. Photographers who are successful rely on light, shutter speed, depth of field, the
JUDGES
frame, and their own vision to give us a compelling snapshot of a moment in time. Since 1994, New Times Media Group has invited local photographers to send us their favorite pictures for our Winning Images contest. Once again, we conducted an alldigital contest and received more than 350 photos. Our judges narrowed them down to
three winners each in eight categories, plus honorable mentions and judge’s picks. Every entry also came in with a $10 fee, which will be rolled back into prize money for each of the winners, who also receive awards from the contest’s sponsors. Winning photographs will be on display at The Photo Shop (1027 Marsh St., SLO)
through July 14. Check out the winning images from 2023 on the following pages, and be sure to keep looking through the lens for photographs to submit in 2024’s contest! ❍
Contact Editor Camillia Lanham at clanham@santamariasun.com.
Jayson Mellom began his photojournalism career at the Marion Chronicle-Tribune in Indiana before moving on to the Athens Daily News and then The Atlanta Journal/Constitution before eventually settling in San Luis Obispo. He worked for the SLO Tribune for 16 years and has been New Times’ photographer since 2016. Along the way, he’s won state, regional, and national awards for his photojournalism; has been published in National Geographic, Sports Illustrated, In Touch, and Der Spiegel magazines; and has had photos in the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, and The New York Times.
San Luis Obispo native and perennial Winning Images judge Peggy Mesler is a photographer and the owner of The Photo Shop in SLO, where she shares her appreciation for—and knowledge of— photography with customers, clients, and friends. Peggy earned a journalism degree from Cal Poly, and she opened her shop in 1995.
Stephanie Secrest has a master’s degree in photojournalism from Ohio University. She’s been a freelancer for more 15 years and was with the press for 21 years before that. Stephanie was invited to attend the exclusive Eddie Adams Workshop, a top honor for photojournalists. She was also a pre-qualification judge for Adobe with its ADAA contest. She’s been published in Newsday, The London Sunday News Magazine, The Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, The Baltimore Sun, and San Francisco Chronicle among others and was chief photographer and photo editor for two newspapers. ❍
PHOTO COURTESY OF JAYSON MELLOM PHOTO COURTESY OF PEGGY MESLER PHOTO COURTESY OF STEPHANIE SECRESTWinning Images 2023 Judge’s Picks
Winning Images 2023
CHRISTOPHER HAMMA , Animals, Western Kingbird, Arroyo Grande, JUDGE’S PICK
Winning Images 2023
LANCE WILSON , Travel, Desert Dusk, JUDGE’S PICK
Winning Images 2023
BARRY GOYETTE , Travel, Manhattan Bridge Skate Park, 2023, JUDGE’S PICK
Winning Images 2023 Animals
Winning Images 2023
CATHY WALLACE , Animals, Pelican Gap, HONORABLE MENTION
Winning Images 2023
DAN BAUM , Animals, Napping Elephant Seal Pup, THIRD PLACE
Winning Images 2023
LISA WILKERSON , Animals, Hummer In Flight, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
JIM JEFFREY, Animals, The Kiss, FIRST PLACE
Winning Images 2023 Flora
Winning Images 2023
JIM JEFFREY, Flora, Burst of Gold, HONORABLE MENTION
Winning Images 2023
J.J. BAKER , Flora, New Beginnings, THIRD PLACE
Winning Images 2023
DAN BAUM , Flora, Native Oaks and Clearing Winter Storm, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
DAN O’DONNELL , Flora, Dazzling Dahlia, FIRST PLACE
Winning Images 2023 In Motion
Winning Images 2023
ANDY SAMARASENA , In Motion, Bolt, HONORABLE MENTION
Winning Images 2023
DAN O’DONNELL , In Motion, Morning Wave, THIRD PLACE
Winning Images 2023
DAN BAUM , In Motion, Wild Ride Poly Royal 2023, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
DYLAN KYLE , In Motion, Sun Spin, FIRST PLACE
Winning Images 2023 Landscape/Seascape
Winning Images 2023
JONATHAN SHAPIRO, Landscape/Seascape, Strawberry Moon Setting over Pillar Rock, HONORABLE MENTION
Winning Images 2023
DAN O’DONNELL , Landscape/Seascape, One Final Wave, THIRD PLACE
Winning Images 2023
JIM JEFFREY, Landscape/Seascape, Shell Creek Night Sky, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
JONATHAN SHAPIRO, Landscape/Seascape, Superbloom, FIRST PLACE & BEST OF SHOW
Winning Images 2023 Open
Winning Images 2023
TIM BENNETT, Open, M&M’s Peeking Through, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
BARRY GOYETTE , Open, Lower East Side, FIRST PLACE
Winning Images 2023 People
Winning Images 2023
SARA FORD, People, Travis under Pismo Pier at Sunset, HONORABLE MENTION
Winning Images 2023
BARRY GOYETTE , People, Inga, 2022, THIRD PLACE
Winning Images 2023
BARRY GOYETTE , People, Carli, 2020, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
MICHAEL V. MESSINA , People, The Awaiting, FIRST PLACE
Winning Images 2023 Travel
Winning Images 2023
JONATHAN SHAPIRO, Travel, Dusk in Santorini, HONORABLE MENTION
Winning Images 2023
JONATHAN SHAPIRO, Travel, Matterhorn Panorama, THIRD PLACE
Winning Images 2023
ANDY SAMARASENA , Travel, Fishing in the Tropics, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
ANDY SAMARASENA , Travel, Inner Peace, FIRST PLACE
Winning Images 2023 Youth
Winning Images 2023
IZZY HULS-HUTTON , Youth, Glowing Orbs, THIRD PLACE
Winning Images 2023
LANCE WILSON , Youth, Island in the Sky, SECOND PLACE
Winning Images 2023
LANCE WILSON , Youth, Santa Margarita Snowstorm, FIRST PLACE