A photograph published on The Journal’s farming pages has this week been awarded runner-up place in a national competition
The image of Holstein bull, Cogent Aquila Patron Lucente, was published in March in a feature on genomics in cattle breeding.
The award-winning photo was taken by leading agricultural journalist Bruce Jobson at the Cogent stud, on the Grosvenor Estate in Cheshire.
He entered it into the competition sponsored by JG Animal Health and organised by the Guild of Agricultural Journalists.
Bruce, who is based near Alnwick in Northumberland, said: “I am delighted to receive the runner-up award in a national competition open to professional photographers working within the agricultural press industry.
“However, the photo was not planned and actually came about by circumstance.
“I had been invited by Cogent to take official images of a private awards presentation hosted by the Duke of Westminster, owner of Cogent. Owing to health and safety rules and EU regulations, visitors are normally not allowed entry into the bull stud.
“AI sires usually only come out of their pens for semen collection and I asked the handler to walk Lucente, one of the world’s top bulls, toward the camera. The bull was therefore extremely alert and exhibited tremendous strength and power. The photo captures his raw emotions and by cropping the headshot, this accentuated the image.”
The photo was first published late last year in an article Bruce wrote about Cogent – the UK’s largest AI stud – for the international all-breeds magazine CrazyCow , based in Australia. The story and photo received global acclaim, according to editor Dianne Malcolm.
She said: “We published the photo as a full-page image. It’s a classic photo, even unique – one that draws you right in to the presence of Lucente. As soon as I saw the photo, I knew who had taken the image. Bruce has an incredible eye.”
Jonathan Guy, of sponsor JG Animal Health, said the photographic awards had been set up to recognise photographic excellence in the industry.
“The image captured an iconic moment. As a company, we are delighted to sponsor the awards and congratulate Bruce on a timeless image,” he said.
Bruce was runner-up in the Yara Journalism Awards in 2011, a national competition open to national and regional newspapers and other publications as well as national and regional TV and radio. His pictures have been published all over the world, including front cover magazine shots and websites.
Not all are farming or environmental. They include images of sport, business, food and fashion, TV personalities and celebrity chefs.
Bruce said: “A good image is worth a thousand words. Sometimes, the photo says everything. And whether you are photographing people, the environment, food or fashion, you have to capture the subject at its best. You have to put yourself on the other side of the camera. And that’s not talking a load of bull!”
Bruce has had his work printed in more than 60 UK and international publications, translated into six languages and distributed in more than 120 countries. He acted as a consultant to Drew Sloan of Greylag Holdings, previous owner of Semex UK, and created many innovative marketing concepts adopted by the Canadian parent company globally.
He has also provided services for Cogent, Genus, World Wide Sires, Trans American Genetics and international government agencies.
Source: The Journal
