First Place: Courtney Harris, Kickapoo High School, The Legend
On September 8th, 2023, The Springfield community mourned the loss of a beloved teacher at Kickapoo High School, Ms. Barron. She was cheer coach who was loved by many and was described by many people as a “bright light in everyone’s life”. At that Friday’s football game, the cheer squad organized a balloon release in her honor. As expected, the stand were packed out with supporters. Our Cheer and Poms teams wore pink matching t-shirts that said “Momma B” on the back and “Be The Sunshine” on the front, which was a saying she constantly said to everyone in her life. Senior Joslyn Magers, a cheer team member who was very close to Ms. Barron, proudly shows off her shirt to the crowd. (Courtney Farris)
Judge’s Comments: This photo had beautiful composition and is a great example of a storytelling photo. A little underexposed but fits the mood of the story as well as the time of day. I like that you got her face in it with the Friday Night Lights in the background and the color of the sky perfectly compliments both the t-shirt and football jerseys.
Second Place: Ollie Francis, Central High School, Resume’
With fall right around the corner, there’s one thing that never fails to bring students together: football. At our first home game of the season, the varsity football team runs through the school banner led by quarterback Jalen Ndongi, 12. “I’m most hopeful for a playoff win!” said Ndongi, with his last season as a Bulldog in tow. (Ollie Francis)
Judge’s Comments: Great angle and composition here with great use of rule of thirds. So much emotion, so much of the story is told in this photo with multiple elements (football, cheer, scoreboard, flag, goalposts, etc.) Great color and exposure.
Third Place: Ali Schulz, Staley High School, Legacy
After being crowned one of the top five homecoming queen candidates, senior McKenna Armstrong laughs while being showered with glitter from a confetti cannon Sept. 21. The top 5 candidates were crowned at lunch the week before the homecoming dance. “I was shocked for the most part,” Armstrong said. “I didn’t think I was going to make top five, and it was really fun to have a lot of friends around me to celebrate.” (Ali Schulz)
Judge’s Comments: It was refreshing to see a few non-sports photos so I wanted to recognize one. This shows true reaction and emotion, plus is perfectly exposed and shows nice shallow depth of field to accentuate the subject. Plus the phones in background really make it a current photo that tells the story of the year in the yearbook.
Surprised, senior Tristan Young reacts to winning Homecoming Queen 2023 during halftime of the football game, Friday, Sept. 15. She's been the center of national attention in the days and weeks following the game.
