Image of Portstewart grandmother wins top prize in 'How We Age' photography competition

A member of a swimming and social club in County Derry was among older adults across Ireland and Northern Ireland who were captured working in their local community, volunteering in local clubs and groups, learning new skills, or passing on traditions to the next generation, in this year’s How We Age photography competition. 

Octogenarian grandmother, Frances Black, a member of the ‘Seabird’ swimming and social club in Portstewart was captured coming out of the sea on the local beach by Maclaine Black from Galway, who works as a photographer focusing mainly on music events and portraits.

The image of Maclaine's grandmother secured him first place and a €500 gift voucher in the competition organised by the Institute of Public Health.

The photography competition set out to reframe how older people are portrayed.

Second prize, a €300 gift voucher, went to Lissette Carcamo from Granard, Longford for her image showing 90-year-old barber Frank McMahon in action at his barbershop in Granard, Co Longford where he has worked since 1947.

Third prize, a £100 gift voucher, went to John Hutton from Bangor for his image showing stained glass designer Anne Smyth in action at the Balmoral Show. 

The scores of entries captured the valued contributions and lived experiences of older adults, who were portrayed engaging in a wide range of activities at the heart of their communities, from working in a barber shop, volunteering in local sports and social groups, to teaching or learning new skills.

Members of the judging panel were hugely impressed by the range and creativity of entries and noted the rich and valued role that older adults play within and at the heart of our local communities.

This year the judging panel was made up of Professor Roger O’Sullivan, IPH Director of Ageing Development and Research; Eddie Lynch, Commissioner for Older People in Northern Ireland; Tara Byrne, Arts Programme Manager, Age & Opportunity; Robin Webster, Adjunct Lecturer, Irish Centre for Social Gerontology, NUI Galway and former CEO Age Action Ireland; Maureen Kavanagh, CEO, Active Retirement Ireland; and Aimee McDonnell, IPH Communications Support Officer. 

Commenting on this year’s contest, IPH Director of Ageing Development and Research Roger O’Sullivan said: “We were hugely impressed by the quality and creativity shown by photographers in this year’s How We Age photography competition. The breadth of images from across the island of Ireland really captured the rich and valued contributions that older people make in our lives and communities.”

“The entries received show older people engaged in everyday activities that enrich all of our lives, from volunteering in local sports and social clubs to learning or passing on skills and traditions. The winning entries reflect the diverse and unique roles that older adults play in our communities and in the near future we look forward to expanding the How We Age gallery with additional images from this year’s competition,” he added.

In the coming weeks a selection of images from this year’s entries will be included in IPH’s existing How We Age gallery, which is used by the Institute to promote healthy ageing and broader public health themes.

For more information about the  How We Age winning entries visit the competition page on IPH's website.