CATEGORY DESCRIPTION
A picture that captures an aspect of the subject's character.

1st Place
KATHARINA HESSE-SIPA PRESS
TIME MAGAZINE (TIME ASIA)
Kim Jeong-Ya ( a pseudonym), 67 ,who lives near the North Korean border in Yanji ( China),belongs to a handful of Chinese human rights activists who dedicate their lifes to help both North Korean defectors and abducted South Koreans to make a safe passage from North Korea to South Korea via mainland China. While foreign activists are simply expelled from China if caught during a rescue mission near the border , local Chinese face severe punishment : For her activities which are considered strictly illegal in China , Kim has been imprisoned twice and beaten up by North Korean agents residing in China.Relatives of Kim who did the same kind of support work "disappeared" in North Korea.Since her release from jail last June, Kim has been under severe police surveillance.Her meagre life savings were confiscated and she is not allowed to leave her home in the suburbs of Yanji.--- Traveling on business inside North Korea in early 2002 (before she went to jail for the second time), the activist stayed with the family of a North Korean she had met in China. She says "they were destitute, the children had no shoes and were clothed in rags. The family had no blankets and the concrete floor of the building they occupied had no mats-the family had sold everything to buy food." Such experiences let Kim continue her work despite the danger. (Usually North Korean defectors are returned to North Korea if caught in China .There are about 500 abducted South Koreans living in North Korea.In order not to jeopardize its "sunshine policy" with Pyongyang, the south Korean government has downplayed such cases.

Honorable Mention
Andrew Eccles
TIME Magazine
Portrait of Joe Pantoliano. In one of the year's more memorable TV moments, Tony Soprano lost his temper in the kitchen, and made fellow made man Ralphie Cifaretto (Pantoliano) lost his head, which ended up in a bowling bag.

Magazine Portrait and Personality

1st Place
KATHARINA HESSE-SIPA PRESS
TIME MAGAZINE (TIME ASIA)

2nd Place
Shawn Baldwin
Freelance/United Nations

3rd Place
Sam Jones
TIME Magazine

Honorable Mention
Andrew Eccles
TIME Magazine

JUDGES' COMMENTS
"The subject is naturally like this… I liked it. It was unanimous. We all felt strongly about this." MICHAEL D. SARGENT, Vice President/News Services, Getty Images

"He is faceless. To be faceless saves his life. It's a fantastic portrait." HORACIO VILLALOBOS, Director of Photography, Diario Popular, Argentina

"From an aesthetic view, the collar up on the face really works. It's like the top of a tulip."
ROBERT SEALE, Staff Photographer, The Sporting News