Sophomore Gillian Schuh had plenty of cause to recently celebrate when she learned she won first place in the 27th Annual Georgia Photography Awards and Exhibition held at Pace Academy. The award winners were announced on April 8 and the work is on exhibit at Pace Academy’s Fine Arts Center Gallery.

Schuh’s winning work was a photojournalistic depiction of a man holding a poster in the Atlanta “March For Our Lives” rally. This competition is big for North Atlanta students as students from all over Atlanta participate and hundreds of photos are submitted.

Before this competition Schuh said she didn’t have that much experience with photography but she’s found its a newfound passion. Prior to submitting her work, she had never entered any photos in a competition.

Schuh’s picture showed a man holding a poster at the rally. She had a deep connection to this picture and was inspired by the moving feeling that she got while marching with thousands of other people. “It felt awesome to be a part of something so historic and it was empowering to see everybody fighting for the same cause,” she said.

Out of hundreds of students Schuh was chosen as one of the five first place winners who receive a prize of  $100. The contest which had no limitations on what type of photography could be entered is open to all students in Atlanta.

Schuh was not expecting to win the competition and was excited when she got a call from her friend saying that she had won. “I was surprised and happy to see that I had won, and my parents were really proud of me,” she said.

The Pace Photography Show is a very important competition and a North Atlanta student bringing home first place is a big deal. Schuh has shown what she can do as a photographer and this definitely won’t be her last competition.