The Burnaby NOW and New Westminster Record newsroom came home with hardware from the 2023 Canadian Community Newspaper Awards.
Leading the way was photographer Jennifer Gauthier, whose work captured five national awards.
Gauthier swept the Best Feature Photo category for larger newspapers (circulation 10,000 and over), capturing first for the Burnaby NOW and both second and third for the New Westminster Record.
Her winning photo ran on the front page on the May 26, 2022 edition. It captured ballet students performing for International Dance Day at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts.
The second-place shot ran on the front page of the New West Record on Dec. 15, 2022. It showed two passersby highlighted against a Shine Bright light installation at Hyack Square.
Her third-place shot was a front-page photo from March 10, 2022, showing Rev. Blair Odney in a preview for the new Rainbow Chorus of New Westminster.
The judge’s comments paid tribute to Gauthier’s technical skills and ability to capture just the right moment in an image.
“Gauthier has a clear eye for what will capture a person’s attention and certainly doesn’t lack for creativity,” the judge’s comments said.
Gauthier also topped the field for Best Sports Photo, with her shot of Olympic gold medallist Damian Warner competing in the long jump at the Harry Jerome Track Classic.
“I could find no fault with this photo,” was the judge’s simple summation of her work.
In the Best News Feature Photo category, Gauthier captured third place for a shot of a father-son team catching the snow while sledding on Burnaby Mountain, from the Jan. 6, 2022 edition.
Reporter Abhinaya Natesh also made the winners’ list with a third-place showing in the Best Multimedia Feature category. Her story, When your ears begin to see, your eyes listen, told the story — in both words and video — of New West residents Cassius Khan and Amika Kushwaha and their Mushtari Begum Festival of Indian Classical Music and Dance.
The 2023 Canadian Community Newspaper Awards honoured work in 27 categories recognizing outstanding editorial, photography, multimedia and overall excellence in community newspaper publishing from 2022.
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
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