Lee Foster Prize
Every other year, BATW will offer a prize in travel photography, named for our deceased colleague Lee Foster. After the prize was approved by the board, and announced, longtime member Ginny Prior wrote of Lee:
From the earliest days of BATW, Lee Foster’s generosity for sharing his craft drew others to him. A prolific writer with an artist’s eye for taking photographs, Lee contributed to dozens of newspapers and magazines nationwide. He was a pioneer in monetizing travel writing and photography on the internet, amassing a catalog of destination articles and photographs that generated an enviable source of ongoing revenue. He was always willing to share with his colleagues ways to generate income online, something that we were especially grateful to him for when publications began cutting their budgets. Lee’s love of travel and his Midwestern kindness – what hometowners called ‘Minnesota Nice’ – are the inspiration for the Lee Foster Photography Award, a biennial award to be given to photographers in our organization who embody Lee’s talent and generosity of spirit.
It is in this spirit that the prize was established.