Sinar Bron Imaging, the exclusive US distributor of broncolor, Foba and Sinar professional photographic equipment, has awarded the $5,000 Carl Koch Scholarship to Ross Thompson, a third year advertising photography major at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT).

Jacquelyn Cynkar from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh (photos at left), Erik Benjamins from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and Brian Kellet from Columbia College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio received honorable mentions.

The scholarship, presented this year for the first time, commemorates Sinar’s founder and photography pioneer Carl Koch (1916-2005).

Among the photography programs and schools submitting students’ work were Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina; Art Institutes International in Minneapolis, MN; Fashion Institute of Technology; Idaho State University; Minneapolis College of Art and Design; New England Institute of Art; Rhode Island School of Design; and St. John’s University in New York.

“Both Sinar and Sinar Bron Imaging were very pleased with the quality and range of submissions to our first scholarship competition, and excited that so many educational institutions nationwide are actively encouraging photographic excellence,” added Ms. Strobel.

The 2007 Carl Koch Scholarship was open to any undergraduate student pursuing a degree in photography.

Carl Koch invented the Sinar view camera (1948) and the universal shutter (1951). He changed professional photography by simplifying camera settings and adding selective exposure metering at the film plane (1968).

“Photo Know How,” a self-teaching course Mr. Koch authored in addition to a series of textbooks and guidelines for professional photography, became a worldwide standard.