NPPF Awards 2024 du Cille Fellowship to Mark Leong



Photojournalism Loses a Gentle Giant


William Luster: 1944 – 2025
When Bill Luster entered a room, people noticed. Perhaps it was his wide, warm smile that drew them to him, or his ability to regale photographers with stories of his vast and colorful career. A photo shoot with Bill Clinton, perhaps, or a thrilling photo from his beloved Kentucky Derby.
Luster may have been small in stature – 4-feet, 11-inches by his own account – but with a camera in hand, he became a giant in the photojournalism field.
From a humble beginning in 1965 as a staffer on The Glasgow Daily Times, his hometown newspaper, he moved to the vaunted Courier-Journal and Louisville Times, eventually taking on leadership roles as chief photographer and director of photography.
The scope of his 50-year career was legendary, from exclusive access to four presidents, Gerald R. Ford, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, to photos in elite publications, including Time, Fortune, Newsweek, Life, New York Times Magazine, National Geographic and Sports Illustrated. He covered 55 Kentucky Derbys and four presidential inaugurations.
Luster’s photographs drew high praise for their artistry of design and composition, coupled with a deep sense of history and respect for humanity. His images often portrayed the essence of a place, an event and the emotion of his subject with high drama and perfect timing. Among his colleagues, he was the quintessential photojournalist.
He was also known for his skill at telling jokes and relating humorous accounts of his adventures that spanned the globe. Among the accolades that marked Luster’s career:
- Visual Journalist of the Year and Sports Photographer of the Year, Kentucky News Photographers Association.
- Two shared Pulitzer Prizes in 1976 and 1989 with other photo staff
- President of NPPA, 1993 – 1994
- Won NPPA’s Joseph Costa Award for Innovative Leadership, 2000
- Inducted into the University of Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame in 2012
Bill Luster is survived by his wife of thirty-six years, Linda; their son Joseph, a freelance writer; his daughter-in-law, Lauren; and his two grandchildren.








