This man is in a battle with a steer which could cause him serious injuries.
The Waitahuna freelance photographer captured the image, titled Committed to the Catch, at the 2025 Outram Rodeo, and it recently won the sports photography category at the Australia New Zealand Sony Alpha Photography Awards.
Ms Church said she was delighted when it was announced she was one of five finalists in the sports category — particularly because it was her first time entering.
"I entered it sort of a bit half-heartedly.
"I was up against tennis, there was mountain climbing, Olympic fencing and diving.
"Over the past 10 years, there’s been quite a few tennis and diving-type shots that won, so I was thinking, ‘do I have a chance at winning or do I not’?"
At the awards ceremony in Sydney, she was ecstatic when her name was called.
"To win was fantastic.
"For me, rodeo was the winner, because it’s never really been out in the spotlight for such big awards before."
She believed the facial expressions of everyone in the photo, the galloping horses and the dust and dirt flying in all directions, were key to her success because they created a very animated, action-packed image.
"To me, it felt like it had more of a story behind it.
"And that’s one thing the judges look for — the story in the image.
"A picture can paint a thousand words."
Ms Church said she had been taking photos since she was a child, when she inherited her grandfather’s camera, but it was only recently that she had been more active behind the lens.
"It’s been an off-and-on love affair with my camera over the years, but it’s only in the past few years that I’ve started taking it seriously.
"I broke my ankle in 2022 and I was pretty much housebound.
"I couldn’t walk and I couldn’t drive, so I decided to put myself through the New Zealand Institute of Business Studies diploma in freelance photography."
Ms Church believed part of her success in the Sony Alpha Photography Awards was due to her firm belief in "good karma".
It was the reason why she decided to become an organ donor and late last year she donated a kidney to "a complete stranger" in Australia.
"By giving a kidney, you’re sending good vibes out into the world.
"And what goes around, comes around."
