Portrait of Britain Winner

12/01/2022

My portrait of vaccination volunteer Alan has been selected as a winner at the 2021 Portrait of Britain awards.

Usually attracting upwards of 12000 entries, it's a huge honour to be selected for the 2nd time. And even better to have one of my vaccinator portraits selected- I still feel very strongly connected to the story and the volunteers I worked with.

Alan himself is a former commercial pilot who volunteers as a "jabber" in his free time as well as his role as a Magistrate. Alan was part of the team that built the Euorfox two-seater glider. He plays the saxophone and speaks Spanish.

My image is the final image in the "winners" gallery on the BJP website here (best until last right?!). You can read the full story of the vaccinator portraits on the National Geographic website and see Alan's portrait on billboards in all major UK cities in the JC Decaux outdoor exhibition, considered the biggest of its kind in the UK.

Dom Carter summarises the spirit of the awards perfectly in his winners announcement:

Hosted by 1854 and British Journal of Photography, Portrait of Britain 2021 looks back at the events of the last two years via a series of 100 striking photographs. As well as representing the struggles of lockdown and homeschooling, these images also provide an insight into a country that was already under immense strain as it entered the new decade. It's not all doom and gloom, though. As 1854 itself says: "Look closer. Because in the cracks, there is beauty. There is the strength of our communities, the resilience of our health service, and the solidarity of our citizens.