Aurora Photographers in PDN Photo Annual 2009

Six Aurora photographers have been honored by having their images included in the Photo District News Photo Annual 2009.  Cole Barash (featured in the Advertising category), Lisa Wiltse (Photojournalism/Sports/Documentary), David Nevala (Corporate Design/Photo Products), Tim Kemple (Corporate Design/Photo Products), Matt Eich (Student Work) and Afton Almaraz (Student Work).

Congratulations to all!  To view the entire Photo Annual 2009 online, visit http://www.pdngallery.com/contests/photoannual/2009/.

Photo by Cole Barash. The 2009 Nike snowboarding lifestyle ad campaign. Each ad features the athlete in their home town, during the down season.  The goal was to create mystery and contrast, telling a story about the featured athlete while promoting the Nike product casually.

Photo by Lisa Wilse. “Enrique’s Playground” – This series of images was taken in the slums of Tondo, a section of Manila separated from the rest of the city by the heavily polluted Pasig River. It is one of the most densely populated regions of the world, with approximately 65.000 people per square kilometer. Legions of child rag pickers make a life searching streets for old peices of cloth, plastic, paper and any other recyclable materials that they can sell. Enrique, age 5, was born into a world of poverty along with his six siblings. He spends his days playing with his friends in the rubbish and swimming in the polluted Pasig River.”

Photos by David Nevala. A series of photos that illustrate Organic Valley’s unique structure as a cooperative entirely owned and operated by family farmers. I spent the entire day with this Amish farm family, shooting what’s unique and special to their lives.

Photo by Tim Kemple. The North Face athlete Emily Harrington attempts an unrepeated rock climb in a large cave near Moon Hill, Yangshuo, China. The “Expedition Series” focuses on developing iconic imagery to articulate the intensity of The North Face experience. The images will be used as large point-of-purchase displays in The North Face stores and online.

Photo by Matt Eich. Elvis the Zebra wanders in the snow outside his indoor pen at The Wilds in Cumberland, Ohio. The Wilds is a conservation center that is an unlikely home to many rare and endangered animals.

Photo by Matt Eich. A photo essay on aging farmers in Appalachia. Dave Bircher, 71, and his wife Nancy have farmed the rolling hills of Southeast Ohio for more than 30 years. “Honestly, we’re farming because we love to farm. We’re not farming because we’re making any money,” says Bircher.

Photo by Matt Eich. On the foothills of Appalachia in Southeastern Ohio, many aging farmers who have spent their lives cultivating the land are finding it more difficult to keep up with the day-to-day tasks of running a farm.

Photo by Afton Almaraz. Riot police are deployed when protesters try to march to the Presidential House during a protest against US imported beef in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, June 26, 2008.

To view more work by  Cole Barash, Lisa Wiltse, David Nevala, Tim Kemple, Matt Eich and Afton Almaraz, visit Aurora Photos.