Michael Hodgson wins Best in Show in the IFWTWA 2024 Photo Contest, HI Travel Tales wins multiple medals

by Jun 7, 2024Awards

Mirror Mirror Bald Eagle Reflection Kodiak Island Cover

Michael Hodgson, co-owner of HITravelTales.com, wins Best in Show in the IFWTWA 2024 Photo Contest for the second year, while both Therese Iknoian and Michael take home multiple medals.

HI Travel Tales co-founder and owner Michael Hodgson won Best in Show in the annual International Food Wine and Travel Writers Association 2024 Photo Contest with his photo “Mirror Mirror.” The photo of a bald eagle seemingly staring at its reflection in the water was the top pick in the Nature category. This is the second consecutive year one of Michael’s photos was named Best in Show.

“It certainly is a thrill to earn such a recognition, and to be awarded that title from among so many wonderful photographers,” Michael said. “Excellence in storytelling through words and photographs is what we strive to achieve at HI Travel Tales. And this award is just further proof the quality of our photojournalism stands out.”

Michael earned a second gold medal for his image, “Joy of Dance,” in the Environmental Portrait category. It captures a group of Maasai warriors from the village of Njapit in Olchorro, Kenya, performing the traditional jump dance.

Therese Iknoian also earned multiple medals this year, including two silvers: one in the Night category for her photo of the Bodie lighthouse in North Carolina’s Outer Banks surrounded by both clouds and star circles, and the other for her Urban Landscape photo of a full moon rise over the Molecule Men statue in the Spree River in Berlin.

Michael also won a silver medal in the Nature category, for his image “Eye on the Prize” of a brown bear charging through water to catch a salmon.

Two bronze medals were also earned by Therese: One in the Urban Landscape category for a night landscape photo of the historic abandoned Sloss Furnaces in Birmingham, Alabama, and the second in the Landscape category for a golden sunset glow over a hut high in the mountains of Grindelwald, Switzerland.

The HI Travel Tales team has won multiple medals in every IFWTWA photo competition since Therese and Michael began entering in 2021, including Best in Show in 2021, 2023, and 2024. Michael and Therese continue to earn accolades, medals and awards in many competitions, including Therese being named “Photographer of the Year” in 2024 by the North American Travel Journalists Association. Which continues to demonstrate the duo behind HITravelTales.com ranks among the best travel journalists and photographers in the country.

Read more about the Best in Show photo and how Michael captured the image in their HI Travel Tales newsletter, where you are invited to subscribe for free to stay up to date on their travel and photography adventures.

Iknoian and Hodgson, both longtime journalists and photographers, have run HI Travel Tales for about nine years. They have been to all seven continents, 49 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, with the hope their discoveries will inspire others to connect with the world.

You can also see more of their photography at ThereseIknoian.com and MichaelHodgsonphoto.com.

International Food Wine & Travel Writers Association, a non-profit established in 1981, is a global network of storytelling content creators. Members come from several dozen countries. See all the winning entries in the IFWTWA 2024 Photo Contest.

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