For the fifth consecutive year, the HI Travel Tales team of Michael Hodgson and Therese Iknoian earned top honors for their photography and photojournalism skills, taking home four gold medals and one bronze in the 31st annual NATJA awards competition.

Grass Valley travel journalists and photographers Therese Iknoian and Michael Hodgson earned four golds and one bronze medal for their travel and wildlife photography in the North American Travel Journalists Association’s 31^st annual travel media awards competition.

The duo behind HITravelTales.com continues to demonstrate they rank among best travel journalists and photographers in the country, including those from major publications such as National Geographic Travel, Travel + Leisure, Bloomberg Pursuits, The New York Times, and Conde Nast.

“We are extremely proud to continue to receive national recognition for our photography and journalism excellence,” said Hodgson. “So much work and passion go into every photo we take to ensure our photos are telling a story that will help connect our readers to the place we are in.”

Hodgson took home a gold medal for his cover photo of galloping wild horses that appeared in the story, “Running with the wind – the wild horses of Shackleford Banks”.

He also earned a gold for his photo essay, “Death of a wildebeest: Great Migration crocodile attack”.

Iknoian also earned two gold medals. One for her portrait of a Maasai warrior that appeared in the story, “Visiting a Maasai village in Kenya – What to expect”.

The other for landscape and nature photography showcasing the Milky Way over the Bodie Island Lighthouse that appeared in the story, “Explore five lighthouses of the Outer Banks in photos”. In addition to the golds, Iknoian also earned a bronze medal recognition for entire lighthouse photo essay named above.

“We love being storytellers,” Iknoian said. “And we are grateful we have become so well-known for the quality of images that accompany our stories. Together, through our words and photographs, we look to guide readers to places all over the globe, hopefully inspiring them to take their own adventures and make their own travel memories.”

This is the fifth consecutive year of multiple awards from the North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA) for the HITravelTales.com team – and the fifth year they have earned awards. They have also taken home awards in numerous other contests in the last few years for both photography and writing, winning raves from their hosts.

“Each year the competition gets stronger with so many entries coming from amazing journalists and photographers representing the best national publications and websites,” Hodgson said. “That only inspires us on to work harder to help travelers find their own meaningful travel adventures – hopefully with us at their side.”

Iknoian and Hodgson, both longtime journalists and photographers, have run HI Travel Tales for about eight years from their Grass Valley base. They have been to all seven continents, 48 countries, and all 50 states. They focus on immersive travel that connects readers with the culture, food, history, people, and natural wonders of a destination.

Subscribe to the HI Travel Tales newsletter to keep track of their adventures, to find your own travel inspiration, and to gain access to discounts and premium content only available to our subscribers. See more photography at PhotosByTherese.HITravelTales.com and MichaelHodgsonphoto.com.