Pictured: Caroline Kenyon

Kenyon Communications, the award-winning Lincolnshire-based food PR specialists, are behind a unique set of global photography awards, the first-ever Pink Lady® Food Photographer of the Year 2012, launched last month.

The judges include Alex James, musician-turned-cheese maker, Michelin-starred chef Tom Aikens, and James Averdeick, founder of Gu Chocolate Puds, and the awards are open to professionals and amateurs alike across the world.

"The idea came to us earlier in the year," says director Caroline Kenyon. "We have commissioned a great deal of food photography over the years and wanted to enter some of it into awards but couldn't find one. So we decided to launch our own!"

The awards are supported by an international PR campaign, including Twitter. "In just a few weeks, we have hundreds of followers around the world, from food writers, photographers, bloggers, publishers. It is so exciting to be building up this international community of people united by a passion for food and photography."

With a prize of £5000 for the overall winner, the awards cover nine categories, ranging from Food in the Street, Food in the Field, Food for Sale, Food Portraiture and of course, a Young category.

The entries will be judged in March 2012 by a highly distinguished panel of experts, ranging from picture editors to publishers, retail directors, chefs and photographers. The winning images will be displayed at the world-renowned Mall Galleries, London SW1 in April 2012.

"We are thrilled that the awards are sponsored by Pink Lady® apples, the UK's leading apple brand. Pink Lady® is uncompromising when it comes to quality and visual appearance. High quality photography is central to the brand's image and the way it is perceived by the millions of consumers who enjoy Pink Lady®," says Caroline Kenyon. "Pink Lady® is also becoming established as 'the culinary apple' due to its fantastic cooking qualities and is delighted to support this landmark event for the food industry."

"What inspired us," she says, "is the proliferation of wonderful food photography in a huge variety of applications. It's everywhere, from eye-catching advertising hoardings, to sumptuous editorial features, from tempting food packaging to daily blogs. The awards celebrate this magnificent diversity in what is truly, the stuff of life."