• A dead sheep lies on a dry and dusty field near Parkes in August 2018. New South Wales has been 100% drought-declared. © Dean Lewins
    A dead sheep lies on a dry and dusty field near Parkes in August 2018. New South Wales has been 100% drought-declared. © Dean Lewins
  • Angus Young waits to place a guitar in the hearse carrying the casket of his brother, AC/DC co-founder and guitarist Malcolm Young. The funeral was held at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney in November 2017. © Dean Lewins
    Angus Young waits to place a guitar in the hearse carrying the casket of his brother, AC/DC co-founder and guitarist Malcolm Young. The funeral was held at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney in November 2017. © Dean Lewins
  • A distraught woman is assisted by a lifeguard after being rescued from the raging surf. © Jenny Evans
    A distraught woman is assisted by a lifeguard after being rescued from the raging surf. © Jenny Evans
  • A woman screams and raises her arm as she is caught in a rip at Bronte Beach in Sydney during very rough surf conditions. © Jenny Evans
    A woman screams and raises her arm as she is caught in a rip at Bronte Beach in Sydney during very rough surf conditions. © Jenny Evans
  • Sacrifice: Mohamad Yunus helps members of the local Rohingya community carve a sacrificial cow as part of Eid al Adha. The meat will be shared amongst seven families. © Chris Hopkins
    Sacrifice: Mohamad Yunus helps members of the local Rohingya community carve a sacrificial cow as part of Eid al Adha. The meat will be shared amongst seven families. © Chris Hopkins
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Best of Australian photojournalism recognised at Nikon-Walkley awards

29 November 2018
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Australian Associated Press (AAP) Journalist Dean Lewins has named the the Nikon-Walkley Press Photographer of the Year award at an event in Brisbane.

Lewins’ portfolio features a selection of images from the year’s major sporting events, including the Commonwealth Games, the FIFA World Cup, the Australian Open tennis tournament, the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and the Ashes.

His news coverage included the poignant moment at the funeral of AC/DC founder Malcolm Young when his brother and co-founder Angus Young steps to the back of the hearse carrying Malcolm’s prized Gretsch guitar, looking almost lost and very alone among hundreds of mourners from the music industry.

Angus Young waits to place a guitar in the hearse carrying the casket of his brother, AC/DC co-founder and guitarist Malcolm Young. The funeral was held at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney in November 2017. © Dean Lewins
Angus Young waits to place a guitar in the hearse carrying the casket of his brother, AC/DC co-founder and guitarist Malcolm Young. The funeral was held at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney in November 2017. © Dean Lewins

The judges described Lewins' portfolio as strong on sport, but with quintessential Australian news images as well.

"There’s an interesting contrast between the aerial shots of drought and the graphic, bird’s-eye view of the Sydney to Hobart. And there’s so much emotion and history in the picture of Angus Young at his brother’s funeral," said the judges.

A dead sheep lies on a dry and dusty field near Parkes in August 2018. New South Wales has been 100% drought-declared. © Dean Lewins
A dead sheep lies on a dry and dusty field near Parkes in August 2018. New South Wales has been 100% drought-declared. © Dean Lewins

A photojournalist for 30 years, Dean Lewins completed his cadetship with The Gold Coast Bulletin and began working for Australian Associated Press in 1999. At AAP, Lewins has covered six Olympic Games, four Commonwealth Games, the Ashes, the Football World Cup and the Rugby World Cup. This is his first Walkley Award.

Other winners included Getty Images' Scott Barbour in the Sport Photography category, and freelance photojournalist Chris Hopkins in the Nikon-Walkley Feature/Photographic Essay category for his series “My Name is Yunus”, which focusses on the new life of a Rohingya refugee in Australia for SBS’s innovative Instagram documentary She Called Me Red. 

Finally Getty Images and The Daily Telegraph's Jenny Evans won the News Photography category for her striking series, “Life Saver", showing a swimmer in dire trouble at Bronte Beach.

A woman screams and raises her arm as she is caught in a rip at Bronte Beach in Sydney during very rough surf conditions. © Jenny Evans
A woman screams and raises her arm as she is caught in a rip at Bronte Beach in Sydney during very rough surf conditions. © Jenny Evans

The annual Walkley Awards, under the administration of the Walkley Foundation, are presented in Australia to recognise and reward excellence in journalism, with the 63rd Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism presented in 30 categories. 

You can see a selection of winning images in the gallery above, and all the winners at the Walkley Foundation website. 

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