Newcastle Herald photo competition 2023 finalists: Vote for this year's People's Choice winner

The judges' overall champion, Merewether's Adam Wolfenden, drew on his years of surfing and passion for the ocean to capture his winning shot of an unnamed surfer dropping into a wave amid a dramatic sea spray bathed in golden afternoon light.

The popular winner David Chung's split-second of drama as a massive storm surge battered Redhead was one of a series of daily photos he captured at his local beach.

"It was quite a special afternoon," Mr Wolfenden said of his image titled 'Golden Views'. "I remember it kind of taking me by surprise - the connection of it all, the sun and being out there at that time and [the way it all came together]."

Mr Wolfenden grew up surfing and began taking photos after picking up a waterproof housing, initially for his phone, before upgrading his equipment. He drew on a surfer's familiarity with the local breaks to capture the moment judges said combined impeccable composition and lighting to put viewers right in the middle of the action.

Mr Chung's photograph, meanwhile, depicting onlookers dashing away from an encroaching wave at Redhead during last year's storms, captured a "once-in-a-lifetime moment".

"I have never seen surges come up that far," the Redhead local, who has made a hobby of photographing the beach daily, said.

"Thankfully, there was no one who was injured, but there were a few people who had a nasty scare."

The judges also commended Glendale photographer Angelo Cosgayon's thoughtful portrait of a local swimmer "Pat" for capturing an emotive moment in a minimally composed and candid frame.

"I met Pat years ago swimming in the bottom pool at Bar Beach," Mr Cosgayon said, "Even from the stairs, you can always hear Pat's laugh and cheerfulness.

"We were just talking and having a laugh and I just happened to snap that photo as she laughed and thought it was the perfect photo Pat."

Mr Wolfenden and Mr Chung have each won a camera package courtesy of the competition's sponsor Domayne at Kotara.

In the wake of this year's judges' select winners announced last week, Singleton writer Ned Stephenson has been named the people's champion in this year's Herald Short Story Competition.

Mr Stephenson's short tale titled Telegraph Hill captured a young protagonist's move from the city to the rural Hunter Valley in a time of drought, and took inspiration from Herald photographer Max Mason-Hubers' image 'Feeding cattle'.

Mr Stephenson has written a number of self-published works, and has received commendations in other regional writing awards, but said he was particularly drawn to the short story format for its immediacy and stripped back style.

"There's no real time to get building a scene or character over chapters," he said, "You're in the middle of it straight away."

A tone of genuine candour softened the clash between a romantic view of a farm plagued by drought and the protagonist's efforts to keep the family afloat, and won over readers, with Mr Stephenson's tale taking just shy of 30 per cent of the overall vote.

"There is a thread of hope that is always there," he said. "It's not just in the country, it is in the town as well - there is always a thread of hope in the Australian nature. We love to grumble, but we haven't given up; things are going to turn a corner and it's going to be OK."