At the Press Club of New Orleans’ 54th Excellence in Journalism Awards gala on Saturday, July 21 OffBeat took home several honors (13 in all), far surpassing its previous bests. After all was said and done the tally included five first-place awards, six second-place awards, and two third-place awards.

In a sweep of the Still Photography (Portrait) category, Greg Miles’ shot of Harold Batiste garnered first, Melissa Stryker’s shot of Ratty Scurvis took second, and OffBeat Art Director Elsa Hahne’s shot of Pete Fountain coming in third.

Elsa Hahne won first place for her September 2011 cover of Meschiya Lake

Hahne was OffBeat’s biggest winner, nabbing four awards and placing first for both her September 2011 cover shot of Meschiya Lake and her infographic Tha Carter IV By the Numbers. She also won second for her still photography feature Home in My Horn.

OffBeat’s Weekly Beat e-Newsletter scored its fourth consecutive first place trophy in Email Updates category, and illustrator L. Steve Williams placed first for his drawing of famed punk act Social Distortion.

For full list of winners of the nights winners, please visit: http://www.pressclubneworleans.org/

Here’s the complete rundown of OffBeat’s record evening:

STILL PHOTOGRAPHY FEATURE
SECOND PLACE: Elsa Hahne, OffBeat Magazine
Home in My Horn

STILL PHOTOGRAPHY PORTRAIT
THIRD PLACE: Elsa Hahne, OffBeat Magazine
Pete Fountain
SECOND PLACE: Melissa Stryker, OffBeat Magazine
Ratty Scurvics
FIRST PLACE: Greg Miles, OffBeat Magazine
Harold Battiste

COVER
FIRST PLACE: Elsa Hahne, OffBeat Magazine
Sept. 11, 2011

HEADLINE
SECOND PLACE: Alex Rawls, OffBeat Magazine
A Krewe-ing Interest

EDITORIAL ILLUSTRATION
SECOND PLACE: Jon Sperry, OffBeat Magazine
Man Signs Dog
FIRST PLACE: L. Steve Williams, OffBeat Magazine
Social Distortion

INFOGRAPHICS — PRINT
FIRST PLACE: Elsa Hahne, David Dennis, OffBeat Magazine
Tha Carter IV By the Numbers

ENTERTAINMENT — PRINT
THIRD PLACE: John Swenson, OffBeat Magazine
Deja Davis Rogan
SECOND PLACE: Brian Boyles, OffBeat Magazine
The Songs of the 2009-2010 New Orleans Saints

EMAIL UPDATES
FIRST PLACE: Staff, OffBeat Magazine
The Weekly Beat

AFFILIATED SOCIAL MEDIA — ORGANIZATION
SECOND PLACE: Ben Berman, Alex Rawls
OffBeat Magazine