REGIONAL CLIP CONTEST | POY 2020

Congratulations to the 2020 Regional Clip Contest winners

April 13, 2021 - It's been a helluva year. So we asked the nine regional clip contest winners to summarize their year of the COVID-19 pandemic and civil unrest to accompany a selection of their pictures. We asked them: What was the most memorable story they covered in 2020 and why? What keeps them going as a photojournalist and what advice would they give to newcomers in our profession? Their reflections are revealing and made me feel hopeful. Thanks for reading.

- Sue Morrow, Editor, News Photographer Magazine

New York/International Region
Harry Scull Jr.
The Buffalo News

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
2020 brought a lot of challenges as a photojournalist. My main beat at the Buffalo News is covering sports. With the COVID-19 pandemic, sports was stopped, altered and changed. With little to no sports, I was put in a position to go find pictures and stories that told how COVID affected Buffalo, NY, and the Western New York region. I did a portrait series on people who lost their jobs due to COVID, as well as a portrait series on senior athletes who lost out on their senior athletic season, along with covering one of the first COVID funerals.

What keeps you going as a photojournalist?
The joy of being a photojournalist is that no two days are the same, and the chance to be in the public Interacting with people is a blessing. My goal on the sports beat is to treat a high school assignment no different than I would treat a professional game. I like taking readers behind the scenes, to where they cannot go, to tell a story.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
To the newcomers getting in the business, be humble and want to listen and learn. Be a sponge, so as much up as possible – even if it is a ride-along to observe, listen and learn. Be the best backpack photojournalist you can be, have writing skills, photography and video skills, be able to do it all! I have been a staff photographer for the Buffalo News for 25 years, previously I was a stringer for the Associated Press, AllSport and Getty Images.

Harry Scull Jr., The Buffalo News
[email protected]
NPPA member since 2016

Protesters lay hands in prayer on the vehicle of Great Grandma Jean Davis on June 8, 2020, prior to a march from City Hall to the Erie County Holding Center demanding the release of Deyanna Davis, her granddaughter, who is incarcerated after running over two law enforcement officers during a protest in Buffalo, New York, on June 1. Photo by Harry Scull Jr., The Buffalo News

Reverend Darius Pridgen, a COVID-19 survivor, presides over the funeral of Joseph Pitts at True Bethel Baptist Church on May 2, 2020. Pitts, 34, died from coronavirus after spending 17 days in Buffalo General Hospital. Photo by Harry Scull Jr., The Buffalo News

Law enforcement officers look out of the Federal building etched with all 4,536 words of the United States Constitution as demonstrators are pushed out of Niagara Square in Buffalo, New York, on May 31, 2020, as they protest the death of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed while police custody on May 25, 2020, in Minneapolis. Photo by Harry Scull Jr., The Buffalo News

Myles Carter stands with his hands in the air at the location where he was tackled and arrested while doing a TV interview during a June 1, 2020, protest on Bailey Avenue in Buffalo, New York. Photo by Harry Scull Jr., The Buffalo News

A burst of lightning streaks through the sky during a rain delay of a game between the Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Devil Rays during the fourth inning at Sahlen Field on Aug. 15, 202O. Cardboard cutouts replaced spectators during the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Harry Scull Jr., The Buffalo News

Mid-Atlantic Region
Steph Chambers
Getty Images

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
The most memorable story I covered in 2020 was the memorial service for Kim McCoy-Warford. McCoy-Warford was one of the residents who died of COVID-19 at Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center in Beaver County, which is under a federal investigation. Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 368 residents at the nursing home tested positive for COVID-19 and 76 have died.

I cried watching McCoy-Warford's family celebrate her life despite this horrific situation. The family was suing the nursing home for negligence and wrongful death of Kim, and this funeral was held the same week George Floyd was killed under the knee of a police officer in Minneapolis. It was evident there were many layers of pain as tears welled over the 15-or-so attendees’ masks as they filled the nearly empty church with songs of redemption and prayer.

What keeps you going as a photojournalist?
What I love about photojournalism is the power that visual storytelling has to evoke empathy, challenge authority and teach us something new of our shared humanity. It's a universal language that pulls at our emotions to love one another more deeply, to provoke change or to simply delight in the beauty of a broken world. Photojournalism teaches me to listen and observe. Undoubtedly, I have become a more sensitive person because of other people's bravery to share their stories.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
My advice to newcomers in our profession is to treat everyone with respect and to never devalue an assignment. Excel with what you're given and where you are in your career. You don't need to cover professional sports to make a compelling image nor do you need to be assigned the most glamorous story to truly touch someone's life. Open yourself up to the community, and don't be shy.

Steph Chambers is a newly hired staff sports photographer with Getty Images based in Seattle, Washington. Previously, she held staff positions in her hometown with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Tribune-Review for three-and-a-half years at each publication. Steph has been an NPPA member since 2010. Website: stephchambersphoto.com

Vincentian head coach Tim Tyree Jr. is doused with water in the locker room after beating Cornell 63-51 during the WPIAL 1A championship on Feb. 27, 2020, at the Petersen Events Center in Oakland. Photo by Steph Chambers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A cyclist rides past a cherry blossom tree on March 26, 2020, outside of Jim Ludwig's Blumengarten Florist along Penn Avenue in the Strip District. Photo by Steph Chambers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Cousins Jazmier Moss, 13, of Allentown, and Chalise Ramey, 10, of Mt. Washington, shoot hoops on Sept. 4, 2020, at Warrington Recreation Center in the Beltzhoover neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pa. Photo by Steph Chambers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

As the sun sets, California quarterback Damani Stafford, second from right, looks to pass the football during practice on July 14, 2020, at California Area High School. Photo by Steph Chambers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Reflected in PPG Place, Duquesne University students Katie Drennen and Jonny Geisler ice skate on Jan. 8, 2020, at MassMutual Pittsburgh Ice Rink, downtown. The couple has been dating for eight months. Photo by Steph Chambers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Serra Catholic's Daiquan Chatfield lifts a weight during football practice on July 21, 2020, at Serra Catholic High School. Photo by Steph Chambers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

New England Region
Michael G. Seamans
The Morning Sentinel

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
There isn’t one story that sticks out but rather one issue that touched every story.

The coronavirus became THE story in every city, municipality and county in the country. Rural Maine was no different. It was a unifying experience felt by all in one way or another. The year 2020 is a chapter in a history book and that was how I approached its coverage.

Access to hospitals in Maine was non-existent. My focus quickly turned to the paramedic response in rural areas. Delta Ambulance, the second largest EMS provider in the state, allowed me incredible access to paramedic crews to tell this unique story of the rural response. I spent nine months riding with the paramedics through the rural wilds of Maine on calls that ranged the gamut. COVID-19 was just part of the call volume. It was a front-row seat to Maine’s response that I am still processing.

The other most memorable story of 2020 was comet NEOWISE. The benefit of living in Maine is the access to wilderness and unpolluted night skies. Ten days of photographing the comet was a welcome break from the confines of the back of an ambulance in a Tyvek suit, N95 mask and goggles. Big, deep breaths of fresh air under a cloudless sky void even of air traffic was a bit surreal. It was quite a show from the heavens.

What keeps me going as a photojournalist?
There’s a never-ending waterfall of stories that need to be reported in this state. Climate change, renewable and green energy, environmental stewardship, rural poverty and COVID-19 are all of interest here with real tangible impacts. That is what keeps me going.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
Stay focused. Don’t take any story for granted. Don’t listen to the noise. Have confidence in what you’re doing. Take ownership of every single picture you make. Be open to being open.

I have worked at the Morning Sentinel since August 2010. I have been an NPPA member since 2005. Instagram: @michaelgseamans and Twitter @MGSphotojournal

Karl Michelin, of Rigolet, takes a break from dressing a jar seal he hunted in Lake Melville near Big Island on Nov. 10, 2019. Michelin supplements much of his food source with seal meat, which feeds him, his family and Inuit elders in the community who can no longer hunt. Seal is a staple in the Inuit diet and it’s a food source that is threatened by the effects of the Churchill Falls Dam which empties into Lake Melville, one of North America's largest estuaries. Photo by Michael G. Seamans, The Morning Sentinel

Jeanne Jacques greets her daughter, Janet Weeks, and great-granddaughter, Mikaela Pollard, 4, on her 90th birthday on March 20, 2020, at Northern Light Continuing Care Lakewood in Waterville. Because of the coronavirus, all visitors were suspended from the facility to protect some of the most vulnerable populations from the pandemic. "It's the first time in 62 years I haven't been able to embrace my mother on her birthday," Weeks said. Photo by Michael G. Seamans, The Morning Sentinel

Lilly Havens, 8, corrals a trailer of turkeys at Greaney's Turkey Farm in Mercer on Nov. 21, 2020. Havens is a third-generation cousin of the Greaneys. Extended family working in the slaughterhouse is as much of the tradition of Thanksgiving as eating turkey. Photo by Michael G. Seamans, The Morning Sentinel

The comet NEOWISE or C/2020 F3, bound by the gravity of the sun, hangs above the Earth like an ornament in the northwest sky over Bog Stream in Smithfield, Maine, on July 17, 2020. When the comet floated by 6,800 years ago, the planet was a much, much different place during the Holocene Era. NEOWISE was only discovered on March 27, 2020. It’s easy to let such an event fall through the cracks while humanity grapples with a global pandemic and civil unrest. The comet was a welcome distraction. And to be able to brag about photographing an object moving at 144,000 mph while standing on another object moving in another direction at 1,000 mph using a tripod from the sitting position without my beer foaming up is worth the effort. Photo by Michael G. Seamans, The Morning Sentinel

In full PPE, first responders from Delta Ambulance and Waterville police and fire remove a man from his Waterville home on April 17, 2020. Any cardiac event triggers a full PPE response by all responders during the pandemic. Photo by Michael G. Seamans, The Morning Sentinel

Larry Gagnon is treated by Corie McCarthy, a paramedic with Delta Ambulance, during a transfer from Inland Hospital to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor on Nov. 17, 2020. Gagnon tested positive for COVID-19. The lack of staff has had a ripple effect throughout the healthcare continuum. Even during normal times, they are in need of personnel. Photo by Michael G. Seamans, The Morning Sentinel

Midwest Region
Alex Slitz
Lexington Herald-Leader

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
Protests following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor: Thousands of demonstrators filled the streets of Lexington nightly for nearly the entire month of June. The protests remained peaceful throughout the month. It was very eye-opening to document this moment in history for our readers, which tied in with larger-scale protests around the country.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
Shoot whatever you can as often as possible. Trying to develop your eye and find your niche in photojournalism is important now more than ever. Also, do not be afraid to ask for help. This is a very small community and we can all work together.

I am the chief photographer at the Herald-Leader in Lexington, Ky. I’ve been here for nearly four years. I have worked at the Courier & Press in Evansville, Ind., the Treasure Coast newspapers in Florida and the Daily News in Bowling Green, Ky. I have been an NPPA member since 2015. [email protected]

A pickup truck sits submerged in the Cumberland Hills neighborhood swimming pool following a police chase that started in Jessamine County when the truck was reported stolen on March 21, 2020. The driver of the vehicle was taken to a nearby hospital with unknown injuries. Photo by Alex Slitz, Lexington Herald-Leader

Lexington police Sgt. Tyler Smith speaks with a man who wished not to be identified following an accident on Nicholasville Road which left his SUV overturned on April 10, 2020. No injuries were reported. Photo by Alex Slitz, Lexington Herald-Leader

Black Lives Matter demonstrators confront a couple drinking in the Fifth Third Pavilion during the eighth night of protests in downtown Lexington on June 5, 2020. The protests come amid a nationwide outcry over the deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville. Photo by Alex Slitz, Lexington Herald-Leader

Mays Bledsoe, 12, left, and Annabeth Bledsoe, 9, both of Lexington, watch Lexington's Fourth of July fireworks display on July 4, 2020. Photo by Alex Slitz, Lexington Herald-Leader

Bowling Green's Jordan Dingle (12) scores a touchdown past Owensboro's Javonte McHenry (22) during the Class 5A 2020 UK Orthopaedic Surgery & Sports Medicine State Football Finals at Kroger Field in Lexington on Dec. 19, 2020. Bowling Green defeated Owensboro 17-7. Photo by Alex Slitz, Lexington Herald-Leader

The Churchill Downs grandstand sits empty before the 146th running of the Kentucky Derby in Louisville on Sept. 5, 2020. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 Derby was moved from its normally scheduled race on the first Saturday in May to September and no spectators were permitted. Photo by Alex Slitz, Lexington Herald-Leader

South Region
Jay Janner
Austin American Statesman

The year 2020 was the most difficult of my career but it was also the most gratifying year. It’s an honor to work as a newspaper staff photographer during this unforgettable time in our nation’s history.

The health and economic disaster caused by the pandemic is the biggest story I have ever covered in my 29-year career. On March 13, 2020, as the coronavirus reached Austin, our newsroom closed, and we started working remotely. None of us had any idea that more than a year later the newsroom would remain empty. But photojournalists can’t work from home, so I continued to work in the field, all the while going through various stages of anxiety and fear of catching the coronavirus myself. Early in the pandemic one of the Statesman’s staff photographers was hospitalized with COVID-19 so the threat felt very real and very dangerous.

The pandemic dominated our news coverage for several weeks, but then George Floyd was killed, and large protests erupted in Austin. Thousands of people poured into the streets to protest against police brutality and systemic racism. Police fired less-lethal ammunition at the protesters, and some were seriously injured.

Adding to an already historic year was a contentious national election and a growing homeless crisis in Austin. Almost every day seemed momentous so I kept working with the hope that my photos would become part of that history.

Jay Janner has been a staff photographer at the Austin American-Statesman since 2003. Previously he was a staff photographer at the Colorado Springs Gazette from 1995-2003, and at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times from 1992-1995. He has been a member of NPPA since 1988.

Saraneka Martin is checked by a volunteer medic at the Austin Texas Police Department Headquarters on May 30, 2020, after police shot her in the abdomen and in the back with less-lethal rounds. Martin, who is pregnant, was protesting the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Photo by Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman

“Black Austin Matters” is painted on Congress Avenue in Austin, Texas, on June 16, 2020. Capitol View Arts and the Austin Justice Coalition partnered with the city to make the statement against racism and police brutality. Photo by Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman

Kristopher McCoy frolics in the cool waters of Barton Creek in Austin, Texas, on March 25, 2020. Dozens of people gathered at Barton Creek, ignoring the shelter-in-place order. “It’s kind of scary what’s going on,” McCoy said. “Everybody just needs to start loving one another so we can fix this quickly.” Photo by Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman

Gusto Monterrosa cries after talking through a window to his daughter, who lives at Park Bend Health Center in Austin, Texas, on March 22, 2020. Visitors are not allowed in the nursing home during the coronavirus pandemic. Photo by Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman

People wait in a line of cars at a drive-thru COVID-19 testing site in Austin, Texas, on June 27, 2020. Photo by Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman

Capt. Bryan Woodward says goodbye to his wife, Summer, and their children, from left, Ellavyn, 10, Bryna, 8, and Eros, 6, at the 36th Infantry Division Deployment Ceremony at Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex in Austin, Texas, on September 27, 2020. Seven hundred Texas National Guard soldiers were sent on a nine-to-ten month deployment to Southwest Asia for Operation Spartan Shield, which seeks to strengthen relations with partner nations. Photo by Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman

At her home in Austin, Texas, on May 6, 2020, Maria Ortega, holds a photo of her mother, Rachel Luna, who died of COVID-19 at West Oaks Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Photo by Jay Janner, Austin American-Statesman

Southeast Region
John Spink
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
The most memorable story I was supposed to have covered in 2020 was the COVID-19 pandemic or the protests. But that wasn’t the case. I’m the early-morning breaking news photographer for the paper and it’s all pretty memorable for me. Our online platform is hungry for content at the start of the day and I’m always on the lookout to feed-their-need. So I shoot, interview, tweet and send from the field to keep our morning audience in the know with all morning jolts of the day.

What keeps you going as a photojournalist?
The urgency and fast pace of breaking news keeps things interesting. I started off in this business many moons ago primarily shooting sports. I’ve done my share of general assignments, politics and story projects over the years, but breaking news brings a unique assortment of challenges you have to navigate and overcome. Nowadays, nobody gives you access or invites you in. You have to create your own access to get pictures every day.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
I think students and newcomers to the profession need to realize that access will be your greatest obstacle to making images. And that’s not getting any better or easier. You’re going to need to learn the art of gaining access. You need to be a videographer, a still photographer, engaged on social media, be a reporter and a storyteller. If you can be proficient in all of these areas you will be well suited for the profession.

I’ve been with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 1984. I was with the Kansas City Star and then (Times) before that. I started off as a stringer for the AP in K.C. I’ve been an NPPA member since 2016. Before that, my membership lapsed in the ’80s when our paper no longer funded memberships. [email protected]

A chaotic scene unfolded in the parking lot of a Gwinnett County QuikTrip on Jan. 2, 2020, after a tractor-trailer slammed into multiple vehicles and overturned near the gas pumps. The collision sent the tractor-trailer and at least one other vehicle into the parking lot of the gas station. Ten vehicles were damaged, and crews that responded to the scene had to free one person from the wreckage who was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. At the time of the crash, the tractor-trailer was hauling nine rolls of paper weighing about 5,500 pounds each. Photo by John Spink, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Atlanta firefighters arrived just before 6 a.m. at a home in the 300 block of Sunset Avenue NW where they found heavy fire coming from the roof and the rear of the home on Feb. 17, 2020. Five family members escaped the burning home before firefighters arrived. At one point during firefighting operations, the family dog reentered the burning structure and firefighters had to coax the dog back out into a safe area. Family member, 11-year-old Isabella Foster said, “My family grew up in this house. It’s been in my family for generations, since my great grandmother. It’s very devastating for this to happen to this house. I’m sickened.” Atlanta fire spokesman Sgt. Cortez Stafford said the house “appears to be a total loss.” Photo by John Spink, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Atlanta police and sanitation crews finished removing protesters and their belongings from outside the Wendy’s on July 6, 2020. The restaurant is where Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed by an officer on June 12, 2020, in the parking lot following an attempted DUI arrest in the drive-thru line. The cleanup followed a violent holiday weekend that started Saturday night when 8-year-old Secoriea Turner was fatally shot while sitting in a car near the restaurant. The site has served as ground zero for protests since Brooks was shot and the restaurant was destroyed during a large protest the next day. Three people have been arrested on arson charges in connection with the incident. Photo by John Spink, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Kaylon Jackson hugs his wife as his 3-year-old son points towards his burned home. The DeKalb County family of four escaped the fire at their Ellenwood home early Wednesday morning, Sept. 23, 2020. Jackson said his mother, wife and child were sleeping when they were awakened by their smoke detectors beeping. Photo by John Spink, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Crews work to clear the wreckage from a 170-car train derailment that occurred on Oct. 11, 2020, caused by heavy rain near Main Street and Camp Creek Road in Lilburn, Georgia. When crews arrived, they determined 38 railcars had gone off the tracks. Two CSX employees were trying to get out of a locomotive that had turned onto its side, officials said. They were taken to a hospital with minor injuries. Several of the cars were engulfed in flames, which prompted authorities to bring a hazmat team to the scene. The area was closed for several days due to cleanup. Photo by John Spink, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

First responders tended to injured motorists as two multi-vehicle crashes were to blame for the massive delays commuters experienced on Oct. 15, 2020, on I-85 South. Two tractor-trailers and at least six other vehicles were involved in the separate wrecks at about 6:30 a.m. The lanes began reopening at 8 a.m., and authorities cleared the scene just before 8:30 a.m. Photo by John Spink, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Violence escalated in the city of Atlanta, Georgia, during the pandemic. Atlanta police officer J.J. Stanley handles one of the two weapons recovered at the scene where a man was shot at a northwest Atlanta gas station the morning of Dec. 11, 2020, during a fight over a stolen car. Photo by John Spink, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Central Region
Matt Gade
Mitchell Republic, South Dakota

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
I’m not a political photographer, but President Trump's visit to Mount Rushmore and the fireworks display to cap it off is one of those assignments that I will probably never forget. Given it was the first fireworks display in over a decade, included a visit by a president, and then to be the sole newspaper photographer from a South Dakota publication included in the pool was an opportunity that'll probably never come up again.

What keeps you going as a photojournalist?
I've never really thought about slowing down. I'm in a part of the country with so few photographers as it is, that I consider it a privilege to be able to continue to capture little slices of everyday life in my community. And my community seems to appreciate it in return.

Matt Gade has been a photographer for the Mitchell Republic (formerly The Daily Republic) since 2014 in Mitchell, S.D. He’s been an NPPA member since 2011.

Two-year-old Milly Meyerink, in the dinosaur mask, chases 4-year-old Elsie Meyerink while enjoying the sunshine in their front yard on April 28, 2020, in Mitchell. Photo by Matt Gade, Mitchell Republic

President Donald Trump stands in front of Mount Rushmore during the Mount Rushmore Fireworks Celebration on July 3 in Keystone. Photo by Matt Gade, Mitchell Republic

Raymond Heiser reels in a crappie while enjoying the weather to go fishing off the west end bridge along Lake Mitchell on Sept. 15, 2020. Photo by Matt Gade, Mitchell Republic

The Howard Tigers react after falling to Canistota/Freeman 12-7 in a Class 9A semi-final game on Nov. 6, 2020, in Howard. Photo by Matt Gade, Mitchell Republic

A bull tries to buck his way out of chutes as Tripp's Jake Herrboldt, not pictured behind the bull, prepares for the bull riding competition during the 55th Annual Scottie Stampede Rodeo on Aug. 8, 2020, in Scotland. Photo by Matt Gade, Mitchell Republic

An Amish woman holds a young child while standing in a field behind the Cameroon Inn as the Bull Bash is underway on July 11, 2020, in Canistota. Amish from across the country travel to the small town of 650 to visit the Ortmann Chiropractors, known for their unique style of treatment allowing for patients to remain sitting and completely clothed. Photo by Matt Gade, Mitchell Republic

Northwest Region (tied)
Mike Clark
Billings Gazette, Montana

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
Following the Hardin boys basketball team's undefeated season, which was cut short when the final game of the state tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. Before coming to Montana I'd never heard of rez ball but seeing how the Crow community gets behind their team was awesome to witness.

What keeps you going as a photojournalist?
Whenever I feel like I'm in a bit of a rut I take some time to seek out inspiring work from other journalists, which always lights a fire in me to keep growing.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
I feel like I'm still really new at this so I don't know that I'm qualified to answer that yet, but when I was in journalism school I got caught up in comparing myself to what my peers had accomplished. What I'm starting to realize is that a career is more of a marathon than a sprint. What matters is that you make progress at your own pace.

I've been at the Billings Gazette for a little over a year, before that I freelanced in South Central Kentucky and interned at the Grand Rapids Press. You may contact me at [email protected]. I have been an NPPA member since 2013.

Laney Johnson, Miss Montana High School Rodeo Queen, pins her hair before carrying the American flag during the National Anthem at the Montana High School Rodeo Association state championships at Fallon County Fairgrounds in Baker on June 6, 2020. Photo by Mike Clark, Billings Gazette

Friends and family members of twins Selena and Zoey Not Afraid release a paper lantern in their memory on the North Torske Overpass, a favorite spot of Selena's near Hardin, Montana, on June 18, 2020. Thursday would have been their 17th birthdays. Selena went missing from an I-90 rest stop on January 1, 2020, and was found dead three weeks later. Zoey died from suicide in 2014. Photo by Mike Clark, Billings Gazette

Sequoyah Underwood leads a chant of "what's his name," as protesters lie down on N 27th Street during the Justice for George Floyd protest outside of the Yellowstone County Courthouse in Billings on June 7, 2020. Photo by Mike Clark, Billings Gazette

A firefighter is silhouetted by a fire at Swift River Ranch between Billings and Laurel on Jan. 15, 2020. Photo by Mike Clark, Billings Gazette

Brennan Graham competes in the steer wrestling event during the Montana High School Rodeo Association state championships at Fallon County Fairgrounds in Baker on June 6, 2020. Photo by Mike Clark, Billings Gazette

Billings Central's Isabelle Erickson (4) is at the center of a dogpile as her teammates rush the court after the Rams beat the Columbia Falls Wildkats in the finals to win the Class A state tournament at Sidney High School in Sidney on Nov. 14, 2020. Photo by Mike Clark, Billings Gazette

Northwest Region (tied)
August Frank
Lewiston Morning Tribune, Idaho

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
It’s hard to drive through a town that has been burned to the ground by wildfires and not have it stick in your mind weeks and months later. When I think back to the most memorable stories from 2020, I keep coming back to the fires that tore through parts of eastern Washington across the towns of Colfax, Malden and Pine City, and the fires in western Idaho, around the town of Orofino, on the Labor Day. I remember meeting one of our paper’s reporters at the office on Labor Day as she asked me what all the constant Slack messages were about, and telling her “Colfax is on fire.” An hour later we’d find ourselves standing on a burnt hillside as firefighters and neighbors dowsed the remaining hot spots from the fire. Later when back at the office we’d hear the news that Malden and Pine City had been completely destroyed, with an estimated 80% of homes lost. A month later I’d be with that same reporter. But this time in Malden amidst the burned-out carcasses of cars, front stairs that led to nowhere and standing chimneys with nothing around them. It’s easy for the images of the burned homes to stick in one’s mind. But more than the destruction, what I remember thinking back to that story is how the Malden community worked to come together, how families kept their focus on the bright side, some remarking about how no lives were lost in the fires, and how the residents sought to keep moving forward in spite of the fires that’d forced so many to start life over anew. In a year where a pandemic swept across the world, fires desolated and displaced so many and it seemed every headline was worse than the next. It’s the stories of hope and people coming together to get through difficult times that will stick with me.

What keeps you going as a photojournalist?
I always try to remember two things when the job gets tough and tiring. First, how lucky I am to have been able to find a career where I get to make pictures daily. Second, why we make the pictures in the first place. No matter how much controversy or cries of “fake news” we might face, the job of photojournalists of telling stories, showing the daily moments that define life and documenting our communities is a vital function of journalism. Stories still matter, and there’s nothing that can tell a story like a good photo.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
I’d tell newcomers to not focus on awards and not compare themselves to the top photojournalists in the profession. Focus on yourself and the stories you want to tell. Embrace and learn about your community, allow your own photographic eye to develop and always be on the lookout for a new angle or way to tell a story. Recognition will come when you give yourself the freedom to explore and make good work.

I worked at the Gillette News Record, in Gillette, Wyoming, for one year and five months. I have been at the Lewiston Morning Tribune, in Lewiston, Idaho, for 11 months. Contact me at [email protected]. I have been an NPPA member since 2015.

Keeley Nielson, 17, fits a mask over her steer Montague as she preps him for the 4-H Livestock Auction at the Nez Perce County Fairgrounds on Sept. 26, 2020. This year will be Nielson’s twelfth and final year in 4-H as she prepares to leave for college. Nielson expressed that is kind of sad because 4-H is her favorite thing to do, but she will continue to be part of 4-H and FFA activities as an FFA adviser. Nielson began 4-H with goats, then sheep, and then beef with her first steer the previous year, named Cuddles. Photo by August Frank, Lewiston Morning Tribune

A boy plays basketball at the Campbell County Recreation Center on March 3, 2020. The Rec Center would close due to COVID-19 precautions two weeks later. Photo by August Frank, Lewiston Morning Tribune

Pastor Rick Hust embraces Dave Murdoch at the weekly Dinner Church sponsored by River City Church and Life Center Church on Dec. 16, 2020. “They’ve given something to the city that the city hasn’t had. They’ve given hope to people,” Murdoch said. Photo by August Frank, Lewiston Morning Tribune

Skylar Mael, left, and Ryan Severson goof around playing “dodge fireworks” at Heights Elementary School in Clarkston on July 4, 2020. Photo by August Frank, Lewiston Morning Tribune

Martha Engledow is adorned with a crown for her 102nd birthday as she waits for a drive-by parade of friends and family at Brookdale Senior Living on July 4, 2020. Photo by August Frank, Lewiston Morning Tribune

Despite the Babb Road Wildfire burning both sides of the road, claiming the family barn and duck business while sparing their home, Bryant Ciesielski, 7, plays on a trampoline as siblings Isabella, 6, and Annabelle, 2, bounce behind him and mother Kristen Ciesielski watches amid burned trees and blackened landscape on Oct. 29, 2020, in Malden. Photo by August Frank, Lewiston Morning Tribune

West Region
Terry Pierson
The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, California

What was the most memorable story you covered in 2020 and why?
The funeral of Army Spc. Enrique Roman-Martinez who was murdered while on a camping trip with fellow soldiers over Memorial Day weekend while stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in May 2020. With millions of people dying of COVID-19 and family members not being able to attend funerals, it's a shock to the system. Family members had to grieve alone or on Zoom without one another to hug, cry and just be together.

By late August families were allowed to attend funerals in Southern California in limited numbers while social distancing and wearing masks. Photographing funerals is never easy no matter the circumstances -- murder, cancer, COVID-19 or first-responder deaths.

I've covered my share of them over my 30-plus-year career as a photojournalist, the last 18 years at the Press-Enterprise in Riverside, Calif., which is now part of the Southern California News Group (SCNG). Making pictures of families when they are most vulnerable and in so much pain is never easy, but the family invited the paper to cover the funeral to bring attention to the murder of their loved one.

What keeps you going as a photojournalist?
My drive is to make every picture better than the last and to inform and educate the public through good photography and information so they can be educated on local topics.

What advice would you give to newcomers in our profession?
1. Have a large heart.
2. Care about every assignment, not just the good ones, because the worst one may turn out to be the best one.
3. Keep your eyes open.
4. Listen to both sides of the story and cover it evenly no matter what you think.
5. Remember you are the public's eyes and ears on every assignment.

I hope you have a large trust fund so you can survive on a journalist pay. Get ready to have many roommates and not be able to pay off college loans anytime soon, maybe in your lifetime …

Terry Pierson graduated from California State University, Fresno, in 1991. He interned at the Milwaukee Journal and Sentinel in 1989; worked at Fresno Bee’s Neighbors Newspapers from 1990-1993; Gilroy Dispatch, Morgan Hill Times and Hollister, freelance 1993-1997; The Daily Bulletin 1997-2002; The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, California, 2002 to present. Pierson has been an NPPA member since 1992.