BRILLIANTLY BRITISH PO

Sthat signified the current times. He reserved special praise for the image’s lighting and composition. “Everything was balanced and the low level looking across the water made it unique,” he said.

“It’s not easy to achieve a shot like that when you’re in freezing cold water like the photographer was. I was full of admiration for her.”

When the Express called Joann to inform her of her win, she broke down in tears of joy and astonishment.

“It’s the confidence boost I really needed,” she said. “It’s a phenomenal lift.”

The self-taught hobby photographer is a television digital video producer by trade but the pandemic saw her work projects practically all dry up last year. “My confidence hit an all-time low,” she said.

Her fiancé bought her a digital single-lens reflex camera and encouraged her to take her photography “more seriously” – but she never expected to win. “It’s been like therapy to me,” she admitted.

Her winning photo will be displayed at the V&A Museum this year and printed in eight sister regional titles of the Daily Express including the Manchester Evening News, Liverpool Echo and Birmingham Mail. She also won an iPhone12.

The second-place winner was Bradford Lunch Booth, taken by semi-retired antique dealer Cath Muldowney, 60, a photo that touched former Shobna’s heart.

It features Faz (pictured) his friend, Nizam, rented telephone boxes in Bradford and then converted them into lunch booths, complete with a table and chair for customers, selling drinks, traditional

STAR JUDGES: From left, Twiggy, Tristram Hunt, Shobna Gulati, and Kwame KweiArmah. They were joined by Mike Moore

Street

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