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A photograph of a child cradling her baby brother in an African war zone moved the judges of a competition in Hello! Magazine to tears, and won a £5000 first prize for a graduate of the University of Wales, Newport.
Jonathan Hyams’ winning photo, which was part of his final year project studying for a Documentary photography degree, was taken in a child protection unit in Uganda. The image shows the daughter of an escaped female child soldier, the product of rape, lovingly holding her brother who was born in the unit, where her mother and others were waiting for peace in the aftermath of a bloody conflict that has ravaged the country for more than 20 years.
The judges of the inaugural Young Photographers competition organised to celebrate 20 years of Hello! magazine, were unanimous in voting Jonathan’s photo both the overall winner and best in the reportage section. In addition to the £5000 first prize, he also won a commission from Hello! and top-of-the-range Nikon camera equipment.
“We were delighted to have such a worthy winner in Jonathan,” said Ronnie Whelan, competition judge and former editor of Hello! magazine. “His pictures are incredible and truly blew us away. We will do everything we can to help him on his way to what will undoubtedly be a successful career in photography.”
Fellow judge Penny Lancaster Stewart, said, “It was both encouraging and inspiring to see such a high standard of photographic talent. The judging panel were all in agreement on the top four photos but the winning entry by Jonathan Hyams was outstanding. It was a unanimous decision. I can’t wait to see what project he’ll be given.” Commenting on his success, 24-year-old Jonathan said, “I was very pleased and quite surprised to win as Hello! is known more for its fashion and celebrity photography than reportage. I did the photos as part of my final project at Newport School of Art Media and Design. I was very grateful for the great support and encouragement given to me by my tutors which enabled me to pursue projects that interested me.”
Jonathan, who was seriously ill with Malaria which he contracted while working on these projects, said that he first became interested in taking photos of life in Africa when he worked on a youth project there.
“It keeps drawing me back. What’s happening in Uganda is often over-looked by the western media and I want to do some in-depth projects on issues that are quite severe. This £5000 prize money will enable me to fund more photography trips to Africa,” he added.
His tutor, Ken Grant, Programme leader on the Documentary Photography course, said, “It's with great pleasure but small surprise to find that Jonny has won the reportage award in this high profile competition. His determination as a student was unflinching and he worked in extreme conditions to make work of sensitivity and gravitas. It is important to see our students again winning recognition on national and international levels, as it clearly reflects the strength of teaching and extraordinary passion and professionalism that students refine over their time with us.”
Other recent prize-winning students from the Documentary Photography course include Anastasia Taylor Lind who is gaining a worldwide reputation for her photos documenting the lives of women soldiers in war zones, Guy Martin who won the prestigious Observer Hodge Student Award for his photos of the huge bottleneck of traffic on the road from Baghdad to Istanbul, Ivor Prickett who scooped the Tom Webster Photographic Award for his moving photos showing the terrible plight of displaced Kosovan gypsies, and James Thomson who won the Beauty of Mono competition run by Ilford Photo.
For details of Documentary Photography and all other courses at the University of Wales, Newport contact the University Information Centre on 01633 432432 or visit www.newport.ac.uk.
Jonathan’s prize-winning photos and other examples from his extensive portfolio of work can be seen at his website www.jonathanhyams.com.
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