Former DDN chief photographer and editor, Skip Peterson, dies

He loved cameras and cars.

Skip Peterson, a former Dayton Daily News chief photographer and editor, died today in his sleep at age 73.

Peterson was a staff photographer from 1973 to 1982 when he was named chief photographer and photo editor of the newspaper until he retired in 2007.

A graduate of Ohio University with a degree in journalism, Peterson was the lead Dayton Daily News photographer and photo editor on the series “Military Medicine: Unnecessary Danger,” which won the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting in 1998.

He also won awards from the National Press Photographers Association, Ohio News Photographers Association, Associated Press, Society of Professional Journalists and the AP Managing Editors Association.

He was awarded first place in sports photography in the 1985 Pictures of the Year, the largest photojournalism contest in the U.S. and in 1982 received the Ohio Understanding Award for documentary photojournalism.

He also received the Robert Carson Award for outstanding contribution to photojournalism from the Ohio News Photographers Association, a group that he also served as president for 16 years. Peterson also served as a regional director for the National Press Photographers Association and later served two terms as their national secretary.

Peterson covered Presidential campaigns, the Atlanta Olympics, Super Bowls, World Series, the Kentucky Derby, and NCAA basketball championships, but his real love in photo coverage was the Indianapolis 500.

Peterson’s first experience with the Indianapolis 500 came in 1961. As he entered through the main gate on 16th and Georgetown, the then 9-year old Peterson stood in awe of the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“I had no idea how big it was. I literally turned white, my dad said. I said something like, what if I get lost in this crowd? … That was my first recollection because it was so huge,” Peterson told the Dayton Daily News. “I think my eyes were huge for all four hours or however long we were there.”

The first Indy 500 he covered for the Dayton Daily News was in 1976 when Johnny Rutherford was declared the winner in a rain-shortened race.

One of his favorite Indy 500 moments came a year later when A.J. Foyt won his fourth race in 1977. It was also Foyt who won in 1961 when Peterson watched his first race from the main paddock on the front straightaway.

Peterson’s photo of Foyt with legendary track announcer Tom Carnegie was one of his favorites.

“Covering the Indianapolis 500,” Peterson said of his career, “was icing on the cake.”

During retirement, Peterson wrote weekly for the Dayton Daily News Wheels section. His work has appeared in LIFE, Time, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Car Collector, Classic Motorsports, Ohio 24/7 and 5 volumes of the Best of Photojournalism.

Peterson, who lived in Kettering, was chairman of Dayton’s Concours d’ Elegance, a premier classic and antique automobile and motorcycle show held annually in Dayton and owned two MGs himself.

Credit: Skip Peterson

Credit: Skip Peterson

“He just loved cameras and cars,” said his wife, Jennifer Peterson. “He was so fond of both. He will be greatly missed.”

He shared his knowledge of photography and cars with everyone and was proud of the rich tradition in Dayton with car manufacturing.

“We’re one notch below Detroit,” Peterson told Lisa Powell, a photographer who worked for him, for a Dayton Daily News article. “You know that Detroit is the Motor City – well, we are Motor City II.”

Peterson taught journalism classes at the University of Dayton. That’s where he met Jan Underwood and was mentor to her and hundreds of photographers throughout his career.

Underwood, who first started as a reporter for the DDN, was hired by Peterson in 1989 after she received her master’s at Ohio State University.

“He was a great teacher, manager and a friend. He was a real salt-of-the-earth man who didn’t try to compete with others,” Underwood said.

“He was a great editor. He could pick out one of your best photos in a matter of seconds that would take me forever. And he always fought for his employees.”