2024 Q4 Picture Story

Quarter 4 judges, Len Wood

This category had more than the photo essay did, but this one has three that rose to the top.  No Honorable Mentions.

First Place: Some really nice people moments. Gorgeous use of color and light. Photographer kept the environment as a star in this without getting repetitive. I can practically hear their voices.

Second Place: Nice pictures of interesting people. Black and white kept the focus on the people.

Third Place: Man placed in interesting perspectives adds variety. Good mix of wides and teles. I wish I could see his eyes, rather than only sunglasses and goggles. 05 is good for that, but maybe 01 might be better without shades to add some humanity.

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First Place: Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Diana Brennan sizes up the playing field while participating in the “Please Be Nice to Me” pool tournament at bar 4100. The pool-playing group, which started as a group chat titled Women in STEM, was composed of pool amateurs, usually young women Julianne Fox “drunkenly met” at 4100 Bar who had a burgeoning interest in pool. Soon, the group chat mutated into a tournament series and community called Please Be Nice. If billiards has the reputation of being a pastime for gamblers, hustlers and hangers-on, the female-centric biweekly pool tournament at 4100 Bar offers a friendly, supportive alternative. “I don’t know if the goal necessarily was to build community, but it was a natural byproduct,” says Fox.

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Treniece Ward lines up a shot as others look on.The tournament is both a party and competition where women practice pool, trade tips and compete in an encouraging environment. It was created as an antidote to the prickly, male-dominated world of dive bar pool — all the exhilaration without the bickering turf wars with bar regulars.

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - The founders, Andrea Lorell and Julianne Fox, began shooting pool at 4100 Bar in April 2023 and bonded over their mutual hunger for the game. Growing up as an only child, Lorell spent hours playing on her aunt’s pool table. As an adult, she traveled across the country for work, always seeking out pool halls to “find a good hang.” She’s since joined a league and even played in a tournament in Las Vegas, where her team won the Sportsmanship Award. The team that knocked her out was disqualified in the next round. On the patio, she details the melodrama so amusingly that her love for the game is infectious — almost romantic.

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Andrea Lorell, left, and Julianne Fox share a joyful moment while playing in the “Please Be Nice to Me” pool tournament at bar 4100.

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Julianne Fox tallies the score for the “Please Be Nice to Me,” pool tournament at bar 4100. Co-founder Fox says the tournament also operates as a workshop: “If you’ve never shot a pool ball before, come through. We’ll metaphorically or literally hold your hand.” It’s not about showing up the boys, even if that still happens. “I think it’s even more fun to learn the game to play with your girls,” says Fox. “I want to win, but I also want my opponent to have fun,” she adds, emphasizing the competition’s good-natured energy.

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Until recently, Lorell lived in a cluttered studio apartment with a pool table beside her bed. She jokes that being a pool shark is her dream job. “I give myself a little pep talk before important matches: ‘You’re the greatest pool player in the world,’” she says, laughing with a cigarette in hand. For her, the intention of Please Be Nice is to make pool accessible to young women: “It’s a community cheering for each other and seeing each other get good. It expedites people’s learning.”

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Pool tables in Los Angeles can be hostile places. “I’ll walk into a random bar in Koreatown, and there’s a pool table, and a bunch of older men are playing. You walk in, and they assume you’ll be bad at it,” says co-founder Alex Max.Adds Lorell, “They’re either giving you tips or checking you out, so it’s uncomfortable.”

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Emily Vecchi, left, and Annie McLendon share a joyful moment while playing in the Please Be Nice to Me pool tournament at bar 4100.

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Andrea Lorell, left, and Julianne Fox wanted to start playing pool but experienced a lot of aggressive male energy surrounding the sport in other bars. It is often remarked that pool halls look like morgues; the dimly lighted, blue-felted table inside 4100 Bar is no exception. The competitors are in a trancelike state, building a stratagem. The pool tournaments often run till the bar closes at 2 a.m. The players take breaks to socialize, buy drinks and watch each other play.

Los Angeles, CA, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 - Riley Covington, right, and Julianne Fox share a joyful moment while playing in the Please Be Nice to Me pool tournament at bar 4100.

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Second Place: Ringo Chiu / Freelance

A senior woman walks down an alley near Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. Lianzhou City in Qingyuan, Guangdong province, is home to an extraordinary community of centenarians whose lives offer a glimpse into longevity and resilience. These women, who have witnessed over a century of change, continue to thrive in their homes and surroundings, embodying rich cultural traditions and familial ties. Through intimate moments captured in their daily routines, this photo story celebrates their enduring spirits and the stories etched into their lives.

A senior street vendor is seen at a storefront on Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

A senior woman in a wheelchair passes by on Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

Senior women rest in a store on Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

A senior woman is seen in a house near Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

A senior woman rests in a backyard near Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

A senior woman walks with a chair down an alley near Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

A senior woman rests in a store near Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

A senior woman rests in an alley near Zhongshan Nan Road in Lianzhou City, Qingyuan, Guangdong, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024.

Third Place: Ringo Chiu / Freelance

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete will compete in a triathlon, is photographed in a practice at California State University, Northridge on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024 in Los Angeles, CA.

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete, will compete in a triathlon with his dogs, Luck (left) and Princess Sophia (right), in a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete who will compete in a triathlon, swims during a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete, will compete in a triathlon with his dogs, Luck (left) and Princess Sophia (right), as they leave the swimming pool after a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete who will compete in a triathlon, switches his prosthetic leg for cycling during a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete who will compete in a triathlon, rides on campus during a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete who will compete in a triathlon, runs during a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete who will compete in a triathlon, runs during a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles, CA - October 23: , a para-athlete will compete in a triathlon, practice at California State University, Northridge on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024 in Los Angeles, CA. (Ringo Chiu / For Los Angeles Times en Español)

Prince Gerard Mahboubian, a para-athlete who will compete in a triathlon, runs during a practice at California State University, Northridge, on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles.

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Meet your judge

Len Wood is a freelance photographer on the Central Coast. He spent decades working for daily newspapers including the Santa Maria Times and Santa Barbara News-Press as a photographer, editor, designer and graphic artist.