Lincoln (Neb.) - Oct. 3, 2000 - Mike Warren, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln post-graduate student, won top honors recently for a sports photograph in the student division of the Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence contest.
The photo, which ran on the front page of the UNL student publication, the Daily Nebraskan, in November 1999, shows University of Nebraska soccer goalie Karina LeBlanc trying to block a Notre Dame penalty kick during the NCAA quarterfinals. The kick hit the goalpost and bounced out. Notre Dame later won the game on penalty kicks.
Warren is a graduate of Delaware Valley Regional High School in Frenchtown, N.J., and entered UNL in 1995. He started working for the Daily Nebraskan when he was a sophomore.
His parents own a camera shop in Flemington, N.J., which Warren credits as prompting his interest in photography.
Warren said the winning photo was made with a Canon 1N RS, with a 300mm lens and 800 speed Fuji film.
"I had no idea it would look like this, " he said, "or that I even had the photo when I took it. It wasn't until I came out of the darkroom and put the film on the light table. I remember seeing the image and thinking 'Please let it be sharp. Please let it be sharp.'"
It was sharp and Warren won both the regional and national SPJ sports
photo contests.
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