Stock Journal’s Jacqui Bateman – World’s Best Rural Photograph (April 2017)

The International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) has named Stock Journal photographer, Jacqui Bateman as having taken the world’s best rural photograph.

Announced at the recent lFAJ 2017 Congress in Pretoria, South Africa, Jacqui’s winning photograph was of shearer, Daniel Telfer taken during shearing on Jacqui’s own Limestone Coast property at Furner in the state’s South East. It featured a fully naked Daniel removing the wool off a sheep in a stance similar to that of PETA’s earlier anti-shearing publicity shot of an unclothed female model posing with a faux sheep covered in artificial red dye to simulate shearing cuts.

The genuine shearing shot of Daniel was originally published in the Stock Journal and formed part of Jacqui’s winning portfolio of photographs entered in RMSA’s 2016 Telstra & Rural Business Support Rural Media Awards. It then went on to win the ‘People’ category of the Australian Council of Agricultural Journalists’ 2017 Star Prize Photography awards.

In addition to taking out the overall Best Photograph Award in Pretoria, the photo also won the ‘People’ category.

Former ABC Rural Officer and current RMSA Telstra & Rural Business Support ‘Rural Journalist of the Year’, Cassandra Steeth was runner-up in the IFAJ/Rabobank award for ‘Best Audio Story’ announced in Pretoria.

Cassandra’s runner-up audio story was a gritty documentary on the conflicting emotions of farmers faced with a feral deer problem. It originally aired in 2016 on ABC Radio National’s ‘Off Track’ program.

Audio of Cassandra Steeth’s runner-up IFAJ audio story award can be found at:

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/offtrack/conservationand-the-act-of-the-kill/7847386

Pictured in Pretoria receiving her IFAJ runner-up ‘audio story’ award is Cassandra Steeth with two officials from the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists