Ian Parry Scholarship 2020 winners: recognising the best new talent in photojournalism

The winners of this year's Ian Parry Scholarship have been announced – a group of aspiring photojournalists who are shining a light on untold stories, from the impact on Japan of an ageing population to the struggles of working class families in the UK.

Now in its 30th edition, this prestigious award was established in memory of Ian Parry, a photojournalist who was tragically killed in 1989 aged 24 while on assignment for The Sunday Times covering the Romanian Revolution.

The scholarship recognises the best emerging photojournalists from around the world who are aged under 24 or studying full time on a photography course. Each winner receives £3,500 towards a chosen project, and a loan of equipment from Canon Europe. This year's winners were selected from more than 300 entrants from 40 different countries. They will receive their awards from patron Sir Don McCullin at a virtual ceremony taking place in November 2020.

Japanese photojournalist Yuki Iwamura has won the Sunday Times Award for Achievement; London-based Capella Buncher has won the Canon Award for Potential; while German documentary photographer Stefanie Silber is to receive a Special Award for her powerful work on the grief of stillbirth. Daniel Harvey Gonzalez and Ingmar Nolting each received a Highly Commended Award, and Subhrajit Sen a Commended Award. The judging panel included Canon Ambassador Brent Stirton among other leading figures from across the photo industry.

Yuki plans to use his £3,500 winner's grant to develop an altogether different project. Inspired by the experience of losing his grandfather, Yuki plans to study ageing and death in his hometown of Nagano, Japan, which has the highest life expectancy on Earth. "I grew up surrounded by elderly people," he says. He plans to photograph patients, relatives and staff of the hospice where his grandfather spent his final months, the only hospice in Nagano, but also to explore how ageing affects the town more broadly.

The grant will help pay for Yuki's ticket back from the US, and also give him the space to do the project justice. "This kind of project takes a long time to develop, but I think it's really important to do long-term personal work like this," he says. "It will be a new experience for me as a photographer because working in that kind of environment is very different to doing assignments. It's not just about taking pictures of events but more about listening and waiting, talking to people, researching and getting to know the whole story."

Yuki is looking forward to having the chance to borrow the Canon EOS R5 full-frame mirrorless camera. Particularly when shooting dark scenes, such as capturing sensitive moments in the hospice, the low light capabilities of the camera will give him the advantage of sharper focus and less visual noise, compared to cameras he's used previously.

Capella has yet to decide exactly which camera she'd like to borrow from Canon but is excited to have the opportunity to work with something that will allow her to observe intimate moments. "In the past I've used a camera that was big and loud, so you really feel like someone's pointing something at you," she says. "I want something compact, small and quiet, with no shutter sound, perhaps the Canon EOS RP."

As part of her prize, Capella will undertake a mentorship with photojournalist and Photo Director of Tortoise Media Jon Jones. She appreciates this as much as the financial aspect, stressing that she has so much to gain from the "insight and the support and the wisdom" of her mentor. Her plan is to expand her project beyond her family. "My family don't represent the working class in Britain in its entirety. Every family is different. I'd like to build up a far more diverse and complex presentation of working class and poor people across Britain, because I think it's really important to make it inclusive and relatable. I'm still very much developing my ideas."

This award recognition has the potential to be truly life-changing, she adds. "I feel like I always had a negative view of my future, but now it feels like maybe I could carve out a life that I would really love, I could achieve the things I want to achieve. People always tell you that you can do whatever you want, but it's hard and not everyone is on the same footing."