First Place
Jules Ameel
Minnesota Daily, Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.

Judge's comments: Mock casualty drills have really increased during the last decade, but this is one of the great ones. The smoky atmosphere, scattered bodies and one lone man in the foreground really come together to create a mood of being in shock.

Second Place
Steve Pfost
Reporter, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, N.Y.

Judge's comments: Great moment and intimacy. The burning in the image is a bit heavy and almost dropped it to a lower place (or out of the winners). Students should know the line between using burning to enhance or emphasize the subject and burning so heavily that they remove content from an image. This image didn't quite do that, but it was too close for comfort in our opinion. Please read the NPPA's Code of Ethics if you have any questions about what is and isn't acceptable.

Third Place
Sara Strick
University Star, Texas State Univ.-San Marcos, San Marcos, Texas

Judge's comments: Really well composed image of a girl at a memorial service. The girls really pops in her bright top. A better caption would have been nice to add some more context to the entry.

Honorable Mention
Tiffany Cheng
The Daily Bruin, Univ. of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, Calif.

Judge's comments: This image immediately jumped into the finalists. Really nice moment. The image really conveys the man's feelings. The reason it didn't take one of the top three places was the use of the mirrors. Its a small detail, but if the back mirror was somehow utilized to show his neck/head's reflection, it would have risen a level. It is being nitpicky, but sometimes a photographer needs to really look at a situation and try to make all the elements come together. By the way, this doesn't mean to ask the subjects to move the mirror around for you to get a better shot... it means you look for it to happen and be ready for it when/if it does. Sometimes it happens... sometimes it doesn't.

Honorable Mention
Erik Jepsen
UCSD Guardian, Univ. of California, San Diego, La Jolla, Calif.

Judge's comments: Really nice composition and moment. Really well shot. Perhaps a crop might make this an even better image. Coming in from the left just enough to take the guy out of the frame would help de-emphasize the wide-angle distortion created by the lens used. Also, would love to know more about the main subject in the frame... name, his reasons for leading the protest, etc. Remember we are journalists and it's our job to report with words as well as visuals.

Honorable Mention
Leonard Suryajaya
The Daily Titan, California State Univ., Fullerton, Fullerton, Calif.

Judge's comments: Great character/subject. What might have helped this image place higher would have been a little better handling of the background protesters. The signs and weird crop of the guy on the right are a little awkward. Perhaps a lower angle right underneath the subject would clean up the background and also center him more with his outstretched arms. Doing this takes away some of the content/context of the image, but captions can help fill in where the picture leaves off.

First Place
Anne Marie Schuler
The Daily Californian, Univ. of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, Calif.

Judge's comments: Very intense image and the photographer is right in the middle of it. The police officer and the guy being subdued are both at peak action. Tilted angle adds to the chaotic feel of the image and offers some nice leading lines into the action.

Second Place
Andrew Rogers
Cactus, Univ. of Texas, Austin, Texas

Judge's comments: The light and intensity of the firefighter add drama to the image. The caption, although it offers the basics, is missing the firefighter's name. The photographer needs to go the extra mile and get that information.

Third Place
Tanner Curtis
Talisman, Western Kentucky Univ., Bowling Green, Ky.

Judge's comments: This is one bizarre image. The woman calmly speaking on her cell phone as a police officer holds down the other woman with a knee to the back. Weird. Again, photographer's need to follow-up to get information such as names to complete their reporting.

Honorable Mention
Chris Neverman
The Pitt News, Univ. of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Judge's comments: This a great image because of its storytelling. It may have been better suited for the general news category because it was a planned event, but it probably turned into spot news pretty quickly after the fact. This image needed to be awarded.

Honorable Mention
Alex Kotran
The Lantern, Ohio State Univ., Columbus, Ohio

Judge's comments: Another strange picture which forces a viewer to stop and look. Nice peak action and storytelling.

Honorable Mention
Courtney Douglas
The Chronicle, Duke Univ., Durham, N.C.

Judge's comments: Nice use of the available light. The composition and graphics add complexity to the image.

First Place
Jules Ameel
Minnesota Daily, Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.

Judge's comments: Great subject, moment, composition and even color. Could have also placed in Spot News category if it had been there. The man's feet and hat in the air, spectators in the background and inability of the ostrich’s handler and jockey to control the bird really tell the whole story. Nice job.

Second Place
Emilee Booher
Flux, Univ. of Oregon, Eugene, Ore.

Judge's comments: Extremely intimate image that is storytelling – the surrogate husband – beautiful. The nearly overhead angle was a great choice. Composition works well even though it is extremely difficult to make a good vertical picture with a wide angle lens.

Third Place
James Brosher
Arbutus, Indiana Univ., Bloomington, Ind.

Judge's comments: Beautiful image with a really subdued color palette. Nice action and lots of layers. The woman in the center of the frame really pops. Well-captured moment.

Honorable Mention
Georgia Rhodes
The State News, Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, Mich.

Judge's comments: The universal challenge of girl vs. llama. Photographer's lower angle and good use of crop (just allowing the animal's head and front legs) work together. The moment is right on. This is another image where it might benefit dropping the color, but that's the photographer's choice.

Honorable Mention
Erik Jepsen
UCSD Guardian, Univ. of California, San Diego, La Jolla, Calif.

Judge's comments: Pillow fights on campus have got to be a challenge to photograph. The photographer handled it pretty well by using a longer lens and keying on one subject. Shallow depth-of-field helps the viewer go straight to the subject's great smile and the feathers are, due to the use of the longer lens, more compressed in the frame making it look like a whole lot of feathers. Wouldn't have been the same image using a wide angle.

Honorable Mention
Jules Ameel
Minnesota Daily, Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.

Judge's comments: Wonderful moment and creative composition. Image may be a little stronger if converted to black-and-white because of the mixed lighting, but that may just be a taste issue. Caption is well-written as well.

First Place
Brandon Foltz
Arbutus, Indiana Univ., Bloomington, Ind.

Judge's comments: A an out-of-the-ordinary tennis image. People want to see different looks of the same old sports and this one delivers. Great body language and moment. Use of black-and-white allows you to go directly to the content of the image and not get lost in what is probably a multi-colored background. The ball zooming through the upper the corner of the frame is the icing on the cake. Great, different sport shot.

Second Place
Daniel Wodecki
Reporter, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, N.Y.

Judge's comments: Gotta love the moment. Great faces. Great separation of foreground/background. An added bonus is the kid at the bottom of the frame... an outsider looking in as opposed to the guy who decided to become part of the scene. Nice image.

Third Place
Ray Whitehouse
The Daily Northwestern, Northwestern Univ., Evanston, Ill.

Judge's comments: Great catch by both the photographer and the receiver. Shallow depth-of-field really makes the guy pop, but leaves in important information in the background. Its also great that the player's face can be seen. Faces are important in sports. The caption is also well-written. It offers insight into this player's situation. Great job.

Honorable Mention
Lukas Keapproth
The Badger Herald, Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis.

Judge's comments: This happens at nearly every football game, but the photographer was smart/lucky enough to capture this player's jubilation as well all the fans. Great composition and use of black-and-white. Lots of leading lines into the subject who just pops against the light background.

Honorable Mention
Britney McIntosh
The Kentucky Kernel, Univ. of Kentucky, Lexington, Ky.

Judge's comments: Well handled by the photographer. Extremely clean image for being a locker-room shot. Of course, the moment is the key. Makes you wonder what the future holds for the guy.

Honorable Mention
Zach Tuggle
The Lantern, Ohio State Univ., Columbus, Ohio

Judge's comments: The placement of the elements of the image couldn't have been handled better. The picture is really suspenseful. And, again, nice face. The other face is looking up for the ball, but that adds something to the difficulty of the catch he was attempting.

First Place
Robert Dyck
Flux, Univ. of Oregon, Eugene, Ore.

Judge's comments: Great portrait. Working with so many subjects is not an easy thing to pull off. Its fun to look at each of the subjects individually. The lighting is also perfect.

Second Place
Jules Ameel
Minnesota Daily, Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.

Judge's comments: Technically simple, yet complex image works well. The subject's expression of uncertainty makes the viewer contemplate what his future holds.

Third Place
Jules Ameel
Minnesota Daily, Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.

Judge's comments: This guy's infectious smile really works. The lens choice is right on as is the use of shallow depth-of-field.

Honorable Mention
Lukas Keapproth
The Badger Herald, Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis.

Judge's comments: The use of the warm light on the subject against the cold tungsten background offers a unique portrait. The photographer took a chance that paid off.

Honorable Mention
Andrew Holmes
District, Savannah College of Art and Design, Savannah, Ga.

Judge's comments: Using the tilt lens does a good job of throwing the cluttered background out of focus enough to lead you into the subject. This works will with a portrait, but would caution against the use of such a lens in daily photojournalism work. Would love to know more about the subject in the caption, as well.

Honorable Mention
Bobby Scheidemann
University Star, Texas State Univ.-San Marcos, San Marcos, Texas

Judge's comments: This is an image that could have really used a nice, complete caption. The picture is amazing, but the viewer is forced to try and draw conclusions based on their own guesses. Who is Shannon Gaga? Is she a Lady Gaga fan? Anti-fan?