Lukas Coch of AAP has won the Nikon-Walkley Photo of the Year for his photograph, “Linda Burney Airborne” which shows Labor MP, Linda Burney’s joy at the passing of the Marriage Amendment Bill.

Liberal MP Warren Entsch lifts up Labor MP Linda Burney as they celebrate the passing of the Marriage Amendment Bill in the House of Representatives at Parliament House in Canberra, December 7, 2017. © Lukas Coch, AAP.

The judges praised the image as “a brilliant news picture with so much backstory behind it.” It shows Linda Burney after she crossed party lines and was held aloft by Liberal MP Warren Entsch on the floor of parliament. Burney had every reason to celebrate, even though it was ‘a bittersweet moment’. Her son, who was gay, had died just six weeks before.

Finalists in the other Nikon-Walkley are currently on display at the State Library of NSW and will go on show at the ABC in Brisbane on Thursday 18 October. Winners will be announced on 22 November at the 63rd Annual Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism and will receive a prize of Nikon equipment.  Finalists in the main categories are as follows:

NIKON-WALKLEY PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

  • Matthew Abbott, The New York Times, Oculi, ABC and The Australian
  • Dean Lewins, NBC News, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian, The Australian and Time
  • Andrew Quilty, The New York Times, Human Rights Watch, National Geographic Magazine, Politic and The Guardian

NEWS PHOTOGRAPHY

  • Lukas Coch, AAP, “Linda Burney Airborne”
  • Jenny Evans, Getty Images and The Daily Telegraph, “Life Saver”
  • Andrew Quilty, The New York Times, “‘It’s a Massacre’: Blast in Kabul Deepens Toll of a Long War”

SPORT PHOTOGRAPHY

  • Scott Barbour, Getty Images, “Sport 2017—2018”
  • Brett Costello, The Daily Telegraph, “No Limits”
  • Craig Golding, AAP, “Body of Work ”

FEATURE/PHOTOGRAPHIC ESSAY

  • Jenny Evans, Getty Images, “Louth Races”
  • David Gray, Reuters Wider Image, “Drought From Above”
  • Chris Hopkins, SBS Online Documentaries, “My Name is Yunus”

Winners are also announced for four photography prizes.

NIKON-WALKLEY PORTRAIT PRIZE

  • Winner: Sylvia Liber, Illawarra Mercury, “Trapped in the Wrong Body”

NIKON-WALKLEY COMMUNITY/REGIONAL PRIZE

  • Winner: Sylvia Liber, Illawarra Mercury, “Sea of Emotions”

NIKON-WALKLEY CONTEMPORARY AUSTRALIAN DAILY LIFE PRIZE

  • Winner: Matthew Abbott, ABC Online, “Not a farmer’s wife”

NIKON-WALKLEY PHOTO OF THE YEAR PRIZE

  • Winner: Lukas Coch, AAP, “Linda Burney Airborne”

To view more information on the finalists, visit the Walkleys website.