Star intern wins student photographer of the year award

At her behest, Don Pettigrew shoots speed into a vein in Pat Jeffery's neck. After years of intravenous drug use, Jeffery's arms are scarred and it is too difficult to find her veins. (Galit Rodan)

A meth addict has a needle in her neck, and Galit Rodan is there to snap a picture of it.

It is the photojournalist’s favourite photo of the past year — and it helped land her the News Photographers Association of Canada’s award for student photographer of the year.

Rodan, a Toronto Star radio room intern, documented the life of a drug-addicted panhandler for a school assignment about social issues. She quickly found herself out on the street, in dark, smoky rooms, and in a hospital, all in the name of journalism.

Her photo of a woman, with wide eyes and clenched-tight lips as her partner jabs a needle in her neck, is part of the photo portfolio she sent to NPAC for award consideration.

Its intensity is part of why it is Rodan’s favourite.

“That was the most intense journalistic thing I’ve covered. It was very far removed from my world and experiences,” she said. “I was proud of having gotten that access.”

The award winners were announced at a gala in Winnipeg on May 28.

Rodan was unable to attend and only found out she won the certificate and $1,000 prize after a friend sent her a message on Facebook that night.

“I didn’t think I was going to win,” she said. “I was really excited, but I was just alone in my room on my bed.”

She credits the win with giving her even more credibility as a young photojournalist, even though she takes no photos at the Star.

“It’s hard to keep people interested (in your work) when it’s not even the main thing you’re doing,” she said. “(The win is) a nice boost.”

- Jenni Dunning is a web editor in the one-year intern program at the Star. Follow her on Twitter.

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