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Trainee photographers achieve NCE success

Three more trainee press photographers have achieved the ‘gold standard’ National Certificate Examination after the latest exams were held.

Five photographers sat the exams, held by the National Council for the Training of Journalists at Sheffield College’s Norton Centre, which was made up of five parts.

And the three trainee photographers who passed the exams were Matthew Harrison from the Derby Telegraph, Amy Husband from the South Wales Evening Post, one of whose images is pictured left, and Sally Loram from Courier Newspapers.

And the NCTJ has also given out awards for the best candidates who passed their NCE this year, with Amy being given a prize for the best advance project and Georgi Mabee from the Peterborough Evening Telegraph winning the best portfolio.

Chief examiner Steve Phillips said: “Although there were only four candidates and one re-sit at this November’s examinations, the standard of work submitted was on the whole very high.

“We were presented with some excellent advance projects and a number of the images submitted for the portfolio section were top class shots.

“One video submission in particular was excellent in raising the bar for future candidates. It is particularly pleasing that the quality of work submitted for the video section has increased steadily over the last two NCEs.”

The NCE included a practical exam in two parts, with candidates taken to a location to capture the resignation of a high-profile government minister.

They later had to take a front-page and supplement images of the call-up of a young football player to the U-18 England squad.

Candidates for the exam also had to submit a video, advance project, portfolio and logbook.

The best results from the NCE this year were judged by the NCTJ photography exam board, with Amy winning £100 plus a certificate and Georgi being given a compact digital camera.

Georgi said she was pleased to win the award and said it was thanks to her Norton College photojournalism lecturer Paul Delmar, who left the course this year.

She said: “His contagious enthusiasm for photography inspired me all the way through my exams to always go the extra mile to create good strong images.”

  • One of Matthew Harrison’s images.