Our Cliff is a world beater

A snowy scene in Dromara has helped a freelance photographer who works for the Ulster Star win an international award.
By The Newsroom
Published 15th Oct 2014, 07:59 BST
Still Farming at 70  a photograph of Jim Weir from The Moy, Co Tyrone won Cliff Donaldson a Distinguished Recognition award in the DeLaval IFAJ competition. In all the quiet spoken Ulsterman took three awards including the overall Star Prize.Still Farming at 70  a photograph of Jim Weir from The Moy, Co Tyrone won Cliff Donaldson a Distinguished Recognition award in the DeLaval IFAJ competition. In all the quiet spoken Ulsterman took three awards including the overall Star Prize.
Still Farming at 70  a photograph of Jim Weir from The Moy, Co Tyrone won Cliff Donaldson a Distinguished Recognition award in the DeLaval IFAJ competition. In all the quiet spoken Ulsterman took three awards including the overall Star Prize.

This is the second time Cliff Donaldson from Lisburn has won the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists a world wide competition for photo excellence sponsored by dairy equipment engineers DeLaval.

Cliff who lives in Lisburn is originally from Loughbrickland, and a farmer’s son, took the winning shot ‘Mountain Farm’ in 2013 as farmers near Dromara, Co Down moved cattle to safety following blizzards that killed thousands of livestock.

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The image received high scores for composition from the judges, who noted that the variety of lines displayed in the image create interest and pattern.

Mountain Farm  - Cliff Donaldsons world beating photograph taken for the Ulster Farmers Union as cattle are moved to safety near Dromara following heavy snow. Picture: Cliff DonaldsonMountain Farm  - Cliff Donaldsons world beating photograph taken for the Ulster Farmers Union as cattle are moved to safety near Dromara following heavy snow. Picture: Cliff Donaldson
Mountain Farm  - Cliff Donaldsons world beating photograph taken for the Ulster Farmers Union as cattle are moved to safety near Dromara following heavy snow. Picture: Cliff Donaldson

Cliff’s entry also scored high for impact since. One judge one judge described it as the “beauty and vulnerability of our world.”

He took the picture while out photographing the aftermath of the 2013 big blizzard for the Ulster Farmers’ Union.

He explained, “RAF Chinook helicopters were delivering feed to livestock trapped in the snow and I was photographing them when I noticed farmers across the valley moving cattle to safety and took this winning photograph.”

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As well as the overall valuable DeLaval Star Prize this evocative entry also won the nature/landscape section of the annual IFAJ competition. The judges from Canada, Australia and Germany praised the high standard of the 88 entries from professional farm photographers in 30 nations.

Cliff Donaldson - photographer.Cliff Donaldson - photographer.
Cliff Donaldson - photographer.

Cliff, a former agricultural journalist, who moved into photography, also won a distinguished recognition award in the people category of the prestigious IFAJ competition for his ‘Still Farming at 70’ shot of Jim Weir from the Moy, Co Tyrone.

At the awards event Kristina Hunter-Nilsson of DeLaval noted that Cliff had taken three awards for work of a consistently high standard. His drive for perfection was clear to all and his work reflects the diversity of scenery NI offers in a small region. In 2012 Cliff Donaldson took the IFAJ Star Prize with his first ever entry, a shot of a lamb skipping in the Dromara Hills. For this popular Ulster photographer there certainly is gold in them there hills!

To see all the entries visit www.IFAJ.org

Related topics:Ulster StarLisburn