January 17, 2017

WINNERS OF THE 39th ANNUAL ‘PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR AWARDS’ ANNOUNCED

Dublin, 27.01.17; Press photographers from across the island of Ireland gathered this evening, as the winners of the Press Photographers Association of Ireland Press Photographer of the Year 2017 awards were announced. Independent News & Media photographer Gerry Mooney was named Press Photographer of the Year 2017. The awards were presented by Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heather Humphreys TD.
This year saw the addition of two new awards to the competition, ‘Multimedia’, for best use of video, which was awarded to Bryan O’Brien, The Irish Times and ‘Best Black & White’ image, presented to Steve Humphreys, Independent News & Media. Awards were presented across nine distinct categories; news, daily life & people, nature & the environment, politics, sports action, sports feature, portrait, art & entertainment and reportage.
This year’s judges included Dermot O’Shea, former picture editor of The Irish Times, who again chaired the panel; Sophie Batterbury, Picture Editor of i + Johnston Press and Tom Lawlor, international photographer and broadcaster. The multimedia award was judged by Michael Lee, renowned RTÉ cameraman. Commenting on the portfolio of the ‘Press Photographer of the Year 2017’, Gerry Mooney, the judges said; “The broad range of strong images demonstrates the photographer’s talent across the many disciplines of press photography.”
Speaking at the awards, Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heather Humphreys TD, said; “Every day, press photographers capture the essence of the stories behind the headlines. From tragedy to triumph, press photographers bring the events of the day to life and document the highs and lows of our national story. I would like to warmly congratulate all of the winners of this year’s awards. Having your talents recognised by your peers is the best possible endorsement.”
Michael Chester, President, Press Photographers Association of Ireland, said; “On behalf of the Press Photographers Association of Ireland I would like to congratulate our colleague Gerry Mooney on being named the ‘Press Photographer of the Year 2017’. This award is testament to Gerry’s outstanding skill as a press photographer and his keen eye for detail. The PPAI is delighted to be celebrating its 39 th annual awards. Our awards are a platform to promote, showcase and reward excellence in press photography. The award -winning and highly commended images from our awards will form the ‘Press Photographer of the Year 2017‘ Exhibition, which will tour selected venues across the coming year.”
The Press Photographers Association of Ireland ‘Press Photographer of the Year 2017’ Exhibition, featuring 124 prints, will be on display in The Ballsbridge Hotel, Pembroke Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, over the weekend, until Monday, 30th January 2017. The exhibition then moves to The Library, at the RDS, Dublin 4, for two weeks. It will then go on tour, visiting selected venues nationwide, please visit www.ppai.ie for exhibition tour updates and to view the full collection of winning and highly commended images.
#PPAIAWARDS @PPAI_IRL
For further information, or images, please contact:
Mary Crotty or Aoife Sherwin
CROTTY COMMUNICATIONS Tel: (01) 661 8777, Mob: (087) 2567751 or (087) 7854484
Email : aoife@crottycomms.ie or mary@crottycomms.ie