Photomonth announces Youth Photography Award winner

16-year-old Jasper Cox from Milton Keynes, UK has won the first Youth Photography Award sponsored by The World Photography Organisation. The award is organised by photomonth east London’s annual photography festival.

© Jasper Cox winner of the first Youth Photography Awards, organised by photomonth

Cox was at the launch of the Sony World Photography Awards 2009 Global Tour last night to receive his prize, which includes a trip to Cannes to attend “the annual Sony World Photography Awards accompanied by a parent”. At the presentation, held at the swishy Hempel Hotel, it seemed that there have been discussions in Cox’s household between his parents, as to which one should accompany him to Cannes in April. Dad sealed the deal, the Sony spokesperson told the crowd.

Cox is also ” a keen photographer and has been inspired by some works of Ansel Adams hanging in his home”. Judges for this year’s awards, who had been holed away in a hotel room wading through this year’s entries, made guest appearances at the opening and could be seen checking out last year’s winning entries. I have to admit that, bar a few bodies of work and individual images, the selection was a little disappointing. In fact, I thought that the commercial and fashion categories produced some of the stronger photography, on all levels.