AN IMAGE depicting Cornish fishermen at work has taken the top prize in a national photographic competition.

Maritime charity, the Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society, has announced the winner of its eighth annual contest, which invites entrants to depict any aspect of the UK’s relationship with the sea.

There were more than 2,000 entries this year – a record number.

Judges awarded the overall prize to Laurence Hartwell for his entry, ‘Beam Trawlers Landing To The Fish Market At Night’, which shows trawlers with their catches at the fishmarket in Newlyn, Cornwall. The image won the amateur photographer a £500 prize voucher for photographic equipment.

In addition to the overall prize, winners were also named in four categories:

Coastal views: Caroline Walker – ‘Heugh Breakwater’, taken in Hartlepool, County Durham.

People & Recreation: Katie Vincent – ‘Into the Mist’, taken in Lancing, West Sussex.

Industry: Stephen Duncombe – ‘To The Rescue!’, taken in Cromer, Norfolk.

Ships & Wrecks: Ian Butler – ‘Mylor Harbour’, taken in Mylor, Cornwall.

 

Picture Editor at the i, Sophie Batterbury; former Picture Editor of the Sunday Times, Ray Wells and Chief Executive of the Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society, Captain Justin Osmond were on the judging panel.

The Society, which provides financial support to former seafarers and their dependants, encouraged photographers of all abilities to submit pictures that captured the essence of the UK’s enduring connection with the sea, including merchant ships, fishermen, coast, harbours and ports.

Captain Justin Osmond said: “Laurence Hartwell’s winning image, ‘Beam Trawlers Landing To The Fish Market At Night’, was almost poetic in the story it told. It symbolised the fishermen, logistics and transport workers who continue to work tirelessly through night and day for our benefit and especially in a year where our reliance on the maritime and fishing industries has been highlighted even further.

“We hold this competition to raise awareness of the work we do in the seafaring community and to unify our supporters across the UK. I would like to thank all those who entered the competition and we look forward to seeing next year’s entries!”

Earlier this year the Society launched a £1m Covid response fund, supplementing the Society’s existing annual grant expenditure of £1.4m, to provide support for working maritime professionals impacting by the coronavirus pandemic. The charity’s applications for grants during this period has more than doubled, highlighting just how many livelihoods within the industry have been affected by the crisis.

To view a full gallery of this year’s winning images, visit: https://shipwreckedmariners.org.uk/photography-competition-2020/ . If you are in the position to donate to the Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society, you can find out how to do so here: https://shipwreckedmariners.org.uk/support-us/donations/