Judges

Christopher Addison is a partner in and founder of the Addison/Ripley Gallery in Washington, D.C., opened in 1982. He has served as an art consultant for numerous corporations and institutions, including The Oliver Carr Company, the U.S. Treasury Collection, Lasalle Partners, Fannie Mae, Sallie Mae, the Kaempfer Companies, the State Department and USIA. He also held the position of Chief of Exhibitions at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian. He is currently the vice-president of the Greater Washington Art Dealers Association, but has served on many fine arts committee in the metropolitan area. He received his B.A. from George Washington University.

Art Buyer, TBWA/Chiat Day

Simon Bruty has created an unusual portfolio during his twenty-five-years as a photographer by finding the extraordinary amidst the ordinary. Bruty began his career as a lab assistant for Allsport, an agency in London. In 1997 he joined Sports Illustrated as a staff photographer. Canon featured Bruty and one of his winning World Cup photographs in a television ad before the 2006 World Cup; in 2009 Canon chose him to be a member of its Explorer of Light program. Bruty has also earned the L'Equipe Sports Photographer of the Year Award in 2003, World Press Photo Awards in 1989 and 1999, a POY in 1999, and the IOC Best of Sport Folio Winner in 1994. He is the first sports photographer to present his work at the Look3 Photography Festival. In 2003 The London Observer chose one of Bruty's rugby photographs as one of the World's 50 Greatest Sports Photographs.

David Burnett started his professional career as an intern with TIME in Washington DC when Lyndon Johnson was President, and has since photographed stories in 80 countries for most of the major news magazines in the US and Europe. He has been named Photographer of the Year from the Pictures of the Year competition, was awarded the Robert Capa Gold Medal from the Overseas Press Club, and the Premier "Press Photo of the Year" from World Press Photo (Holland.) This year he has published two books, "Soul Rebel: An Intimate Portrait of Bob Marley," and "44 Days: Iran and the Remaking of the World," a photographic memoire of the Iranian Revolution. He is a co-founder of Contact Press Images, the New York based photojournalism agency.

Art Buyer, Saatchi & Saatchi Healthcare

Rebecca Crumley is the Weddings Photo Editor at The Knot Inc., the leading wedding resource. As Weddings Photo Editor, Crumley is responsible for selecting each Real Wedding story featured in The Knot Wedding Network: the brand of national and print magazines, theknot.com, and dozens of other related wedding websites. She maintains relations with hundreds of wedding and lifestyle photographers, reviewing weddings on a daily basis. With a photography background and prior experience at The Smithsonian Institution and Maine Media Workshops, Crumley is often called upon for her expertise. Highlights include being a participating judge for Photo District News; a featured editor for PhotoServe Editor's Choice, Picture magazine, and The Washington Post; will be a panelist at the 2009 Photo Plus Expo and is a returning judge to FotoWeek DC.

Kat's diverse background as an art student, artist's rep, photo studio manager, creative wrangler and art producer give her a 360-degree perspective of the advertising world. She's worked on the agency side, vendor side and the client side with Campbell Mithun, Carmichael Lynch, The Martin Agency, Target and Best Buy. Clients have included St. Ives, Nexxus, TREsemme, Vanity Fair Lingerie, Wrangler, Harley-Davidson, Saab, Finlandia Vodka and Seiko, and she's been fortunate enough to work with many incredible shooters over the years. As a consultant and advisor, Kat's given presentations and workshops all over the country to professionals and students interested in learning some of the ins and outs of advertising. In addition to serving as the Board Chair of MNfashion Kat is currently on advisory boards/committees for The Women's Foundation of Minnesota, The Advertising Federation of Minnesota, Stevie Ray's and Stage Place. She previously served on the Board of Directors of the Minnesota Center for Photography and functioned on leadership roles in various school-related groups. Kat believes that sharing her experiences with others will help keep our industry strong.

Ruth Eichhorn is the Director of Photography of the German GEO magazines since 1994. She started her career with GEO in 1980 with the launch of the French version of the magazine. From 1988 to 1994 she worked out of GEO's New York office as their Bureau Chief. Before joining GEO, she worked as Photo Editor for several German magazines. Besides her work as a Photo Editor she curated and organised numerous photo exhibitions (among others "Earth from Above" and "The African View" in Germany) and edited several photo books for GEO, among them the book "The photographers - 60 extraordinary stories from 30 years of GEO". She served in numerous juries of national and international photo contests and was a member of the World Press Photo Award in 2004 and 2006. She is the Chairman of the German nominating committee for the Joop Masterclass for young photographers. She is a permanent member of the jury of the UNICEF Photo of the Year Award. She was born and raised in Kiel/Germany and lived and studied in Paris/France. German GEO was elected for "Best Use of Photography" by the Picture of the Year International Competition of the Missouri School of Journalism/USA and was elected Visual Lead-Magazine in Germany.

Producers

Gail Fisher, senior photo editor, National Geographic magazine, in 2007 made the leap from the world of newspapers to magazines. Formerly senior photo editor of projects for the Los Angeles Times, she covered social issues during the course of her career throughout the world. She has traveled extensively throughout Asia, the Middle East, Africa, South and Central America as a photojournalist.

Her editing skills and photography have been recognized internationally with numerous awards, judging, teaching and speaking engagements. In 2008, Pictures of the Year International awarded her second place Magazine Editor of the year. In 2006, she was recognized Best of Photojournalism Newspaper Picture Editor of the Year, in 2005, runner-up. In 2006 Altered Oceans series was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in Explanatory Journalism, which Gail was the photo editor. And, in 2005, the investigative King Drew project was honored the Pulitzer Public Service award in which she was also part of the team.

Some of her accomplishments as a photojournalist include the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for outstanding coverage of the disadvantaged, the Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism, the Harry Chapin World Hunger Award and twice won the Community Awareness Award in 1996 and 2002 from the National Press Photographers Pictures of the Year.

A native of Akron, Ohio, Gail earned her B.A. in Liberal Arts from Miami University of Ohio, and an M.F.A. in Photojournalism from Ohio University. She has two children, Whitney, and Zack.

Deanne Fitzmaurice is a Pulitzer Prize winning freelance photojournalist based in San Francisco. She has also received awards from Pictures of the Year International, Best of Photojournalism, UNICEF Photo of the Year, the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism, and Associated Press' Mark Twain Award. Deanne has been named one of Microsoft's prestigious Icons of Imaging. Deanne's photographs have been published in numerous magazines including Time, Newsweek, NY Times Magazine, MSNBC and Sports Illustrated. Her work has been shown at Visa pour L'Image Photojournalism Festival in Perpignan, France. She is a co-founder of the camera bag company Think Tank Photo.

Director, Smithsonian Photographic Initiative

White House Photo Editor

Rob Haggart is founder of the popular photo industry blog APhotoEditor.com and 2009 recipient of the Griffin Museum of Photography Focus Award for Rising Star, awarded to an "emerging force the photographic community is watching with interest."

Haggart is the former director of photography for Men's Journal and Outside magazines. He has received photo editing recognition from Graphis, American Photography, Society of Publication Designers, Communication Arts, American Society of Magazine Editors, Photo District News, and was chosen as part of the creative team of the year by Ad Week. He currently freelances as a photography director and runs APhotoEditor.com, an innovative and engaging blog on photography. His most recent venture, APhotoFolio.com builds portfolio websites for photographers.

For nearly two decades, Washington DC-based photographer John Harrington has covered the world of politics and traveled internationally on assignment. A 2007 recipient of the United Nations' Leadership Award in the field of photography, Harrington's work has appeared in Time, Newsweek and Rolling Stone, and his commercial clients have included Coca-Cola, SiriusXM Satellite Radio and Lockheed Martin. Harrington has produced three commissioned books for the Smithsonian and the second edition of his best-selling book 'Best Business Practices for Photographers', is due out in October of 2009. Currently, he is also serving as President of the White House News Photographers Association.

Born in San Francisco in 1944, raised in Virginia, David Alan Harvey discovered photography at the age of 11. When he was 20, David lived with and documented the lives of a black family living in Norfolk, Virginia. With these photographs he published his book, "Tell it Like it Is" in 1966. Harvey has photographed more than 40 articles for National Geographic Magazine covering a wide range of subjects, including hip-hop music, Vietnam, North Carolina's Outer Banks, Tokyo, Grenada, Malaysia, the Puget Sound, the Maya, stock car racing, and Barcelona. Harvey's work has been exhibited at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Nikon Gallery, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. His photographs have appeared in Life, the New York Times, and Sports Illustrated. He has published three books, Cuba, Divided Soul and Living Proof. Harvey joined Magnum Photos as an associate in 1993 and became a member in 1997. He is based in New York.

Assistant Director, Montpelier Arts Center, Laurel, MD

David Hicks is the photography editor for Washingtonian Magazine.

Born in Arlington, VA, he grew up mostly in Middleburg, graduated from Loudoun County High School, and received a painting degree from the Rhode Island School of Design.

After college, he worked for a billboard company, where his assignments included painting the Marlboro man at RFK Stadium. Also an eight-foot chicken leg and a similarly proportioned ice-cream sundae.

His photo editing career began at stock agency Uniphoto/Pictor in the mid-90’s.

Photographer, Washington Nationals

Photographer, multimedia producer

Eugene Mopsik, who took up his appointment as executive director of the American Society of Media Photographers, ASMP, six years ago, has a long and distinguished record with the trade association. A successful Philadelphia corporate/industrial photographer Mr. Mopsik served on ASMP’s board for many years, including a term as president, 2000-2001. He has a Bachelor of Science in Economics degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and admits being ill-equipped at graduation, in 1970, to become a professional photographer but proceeded with this chosen career, in spite of “good advice from family and friends.”

As ASMP executive director, he has been involved in discussions with the Nielsen Corp., Getty Images, the New York Times regarding their freelance contracts, and worked to create new agreements between photographers and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) regarding the rights to images submitted for various AIA competitions. Recently he has also been very involved with the creation of strategy for the congressional discussions related to Orphan Works legislation along with overseeing educational programming for ASMP. Beyond the day-to-day management of ASMP’s operations, Mr. Mopsik develops long-range strategy to maintain ASMP’s position as the premier trade association for the world’s most respected photographers. When not in the office or traveling for ASMP, he can found sailing or gardening.

Photography Director, and previously Photo Editor, of the award-winning National Wildlife, a publication of the National Wildlife Federation (NWF). Also former Photo Editor of International Wildlife, another NWF magazine which ceased publication in 2002. Journalism degree, self-taught photographer. A founder and past president of the North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA) and past president of its educational arm, the NANPA Foundation. Charter affiliate member of the International League of Conservation Photographers. Also past chapter president, vice-president and treasurer of the American Society of Picture Professionals, and member of the National Press Photographers Association, Society of Professional Journalists and Outdoor Writers Association of America. Speaker, panelist and judge at many forums, including six NANPA Summits, FotoWeek DC, the Lucie Awards, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute, Maine Photo Workshops, Photography at the Summit, Valley Land Fund, Guilfoyle Report Photo Awards, International Wildlife Film Festival and Outdoor Writers Association conferences.

Collector, Washington DC

Mark L. Power is a photographer/critic currently living near Washington, DC. In 1998 after twenty-seven years, he retired as a professor of photography at the Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington, DC. He currently teaches at Photoworks at Glen Echo, MD. He has curated many shows in the Washington area including four exhibitions at the Corcoran Gallery of Art.

Power’s photography has been widely exhibited in America. He has also shown work in Paris, London, and Norwich, England. He has published photography in 2wice, Camera, Creative Camera, Fotographies ( Paris), and The Photo Review. His work is in a number of museum collections.

He is a professional critic and has published over 100 articles on art and photography-related issues. He wrote photography criticism for the Washington Post for four years and has also written for many other publications. His writings include introductions to books by George Krause, Nancy Rexroth, Oi Veeraswan, and Grant Delin.

For the past 25 years, Bob Sacha hasmade his reputation as a globe trotting, award-winning photojournalist. He has produced photo essays, portraits and covers for National Geographic, Life, Time and Fortune and many other domestic and foreign magazines. His photographs have been exhibited internationally and honored with numerous awards.

In 2008, Bob joined the Emmy Award-winning multimedia studio MediaStorm ( http://mediastorm.org/ ) where his first piece, Bearing Witness: FIve Years of the Iraq War, ( http://iraq.reuters.com/ ) won first place in the Online News Association Competition and the New York Photo Festival. He was the 2006-07 John H. and James L. Knight Foundation Fellow at Ohio University. He teaches photography and multimedia at the International Center of Photography in NYC and in workshops around the world. See more at bobsacha.com.

Marion Schut-Koelemij, who received her BA in History from the University of Amsterdam, was the founder, owner and managing director of Transworld Features in the Netherlands from 1967-2002. Her photo agency represented renowned photojournalists and major agencies from the USA, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands. She was a jury member in the 1985 World Press Photo Competition and served on a team of Dutch professionas which for more than 20 years was involved in the pre-selection committee for the WPP Competition. As a board member of Fotofestival Naarden, the most prestigious photo festival in the Netherlands, she curated exhibitions, organized events, and attracted sponsorship. She has been the co-editor of numerous books and is fluent in Dutch, English, French and German.

Shannon Simmons has been an Art Director for the Washington-based Creative Studio of Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for more than 13 years. Her award-winning work is distinguished by its variety and scope.  Working along side Ogilvy’s account groups, she provides visual interpretation for PSAs, marketing materials, advertising, public education campaigns and employee communications.

Recent works include Gold Addy winning collateral for the Children’s Defense Fund, materials for Lance Armstrong Foundation, and The Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Inside Knowledge: Get the Facts About Gynecologic Cancer Campaign. Her largest account is NHLBI’s award-winning The Heart Truth Campaign, which she has played a key role in since its inception in 2001.

Prior to joining Ogilvy PR, Shannon worked for The Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, DC as part of the marketing/public relations group. She holds a bachelor’s of fine arts in Graphic Design from the Corcoran College of Art + Design.

Amanda Sosa Stone is a consultant to photographers on creative and business aspects of their careers. She has a degree in photography from the Southeast Center for Photographic Studies. With the understanding that she did not want to become a photographer she moved to New York City, after graduation, to pursue a career in the industry.

Amanda worked with industry icon Elyse Weissberg, before becoming an art buyer for FCBNY (now Draft FCB). She is also the founder of the online resource guide called ShootinFlorida.com. She continues to strive to raise the bar in our industry.

Additionally, Amanda worked as the contributing photo editor, on a book by Elyse Weissberg, which was released in Feb 2004. Currently she co-Authored the book "The Photographer’s Survival Guide" with Suzanne Sease, on book shelves now.

Amanda lives in Orlando, Florida with her husband and son.

Bonnie Stutski is the senior photogrphy editor for Smithsonian magazine, where she researches, assigns, directs and edits photography to illustrate articles and photo essays. Bonnie has more than30 years' experience in photography and publishing, working at various times as a freelance photographer, photo agent, documentary film producer, and as a photo editor (and occasional writer) for National Wildlife Federation Books, the National Geographic Society and Time-Life Books. Bonnie is a member of ASPP (American Society of Picture Editors), NANPA (North American Nature Photography Association), and is on the affiliae Council of ILCP (International League of Conservation Photographers). Besides judging Smithsonian magazine',s annual photography contest, she has judged and curated a number of other photography contests and exhibits mounted by organizations such as Nikon, regional Artists' Guilds , and galleries and museums around the country.

Photographer

Susan has been a long-time Photo Editor at National Geographic Magazine. After graduating from the Philadelphia College of Art in 1970 with a BFA in photography, she spent five years as a staff photographer at the Philadelphia Daily News. Before joining National Geographic, she worked as a photo editor for another five years at the New York Post.

As Senior Photo Editor for National Geographic Traveler magazine, Dan Westergren is responsible for the magazine's photographic vision. While under his watchful eye, National Geographic Traveler has won numerous awards for photography.

Besides photo editing, Dan is an accomplished photographer who has photographed a variety of articles for Traveler magazine. He particularly enjoys cold, high places, having photographed the summits of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Mt. Blanc, and the Matterhorn for the pages of Traveler. He is also an experienced teacher, having led workshops for National Geographic Expeditions and Santa Fe Photo Workshops in Santa Fe, Tuscany and Alaska.