Photo contest winners announced

By JoAn Bjarko
Publisher

View all winning photos

The 11th annual North Forty News-Fossil Creek Current photo contest brought out the best in area amateur photographers capturing the interesting, the entertaining and the unusual aspects of Larimer and Weld counties.

One hundred twenty-seven photography buffs turned in 211 photos for three volunteer judges to analyze and rank. As usual, scores for the top shots differed by decimal points.

While photo judging is subjective, one feature is certain. Contestants love their cats and dogs. Ninety-nine critters of all shapes, colors and demeanors challenged the judges to focus in on the outstanding entries.

Cats and Dogs

Black on orange caught the judges' attention and delivered the first-place prize in this category to Amy Jo Fristoe of Wellington. "Good color," said one judge. "Your eyes go to the bright spot and then to the dog." Another noted Fristoe caught a unique moment with great composition, and it's funny.

Dave Marcy of Fort Collins collected second place with good focus and contrast with his black-and-white entry of Sakari (Sweet), an American Eskimo dog, posing for the camera in the backyard.

Klondike perched on a wooden fence and surrounded by flowers garnered third place for Pam Furumo of Bellvue. "I like the way the railing leads to the cat," said one judge, who also noted how the depth of field setting blurred the background.

Honorable mention goes to Cheryl Kolus of Fort Collins for her photo of Nikki playing ball. "Beautiful light. Good, tight composition," said one judge.

Architecture

Bill Meikle of Fort Collins nailed first place in Architecture. Judges ranked it high for good exposure, sharp focus and realistic colors. One noted the pathway leading the viewer's eye to the barn. "The photographer thought about what he was doing," commented a judge.

Lee Paustian of LaPorte earned second place with a trip to Old Town to photograph an alley. "It's very moody--a different way of looking at what some people might say is the ugly side of a building," said a judge.

Interesting light and shadows and contrasting angles in a weathered schoolhouse earned Maura Green of Fort Collins third place. She found the photo inspiration east of Interstate 25 on the road to Carr.

Honorable mention goes to Pam Logan of Wellington for capturing the serene pastoral setting of an old barn in Glendevey.

Gene Dodd of Bellvue also earned honorable mention for his unusual take on the category--nonhuman architecture--with a close-up of a beehive comb, or bee condo.

Leaves

From mountain mahogany to coleus, the entries for the Leaves category covered lots of territory from numerous perspectives. Gene Dodd of Bellvue won accolades and first place for a close-up of mountain mahogany in bloom, something many people never see, let alone photograph. "It's perfectly composed, perfectly exposed, and it's a beautiful print," said one judge.

James Waite of Fort Collins won second place with two golden leaves clinging to a rock in a river. "The eye goes right to the leaves," said one judge. "The person showed technical knowledge with a slow shutter speed to capture the water," said another.

Mandy Kotzman of LaPorte earned third place for her combination of colors --red, green and purple - in her choice of leaves and berries.

Color also caught the eyes of judges, giving Jill Kuhn of Fort Collins honorable mention for her composition of plants growing at the Children's Garden.

Outdoor Sports

Mike Rushing of Fort Collins handily won first place in the Outdoor Sports category by catching the split second before family friend Jessica Smith tumbled from her wakeboard into Horsetooth Reservoir. "It captures a clear, decisive moment before the picture isn't any good," noted one judge. Lighting, focus and color also won points.

Michael Luka of Littleton captured second place for a photo of a toddler sliding down a toboggan hill in Red Feather Lakes. The splash of green among shades of blue caught one judge's eye. Composition and exposure also earned points.

"It's a real edgy composition," a judge said about Lee Paustian's black-and-white photo of a skateboarder. The LaPorte teenager won third place for the difficult shot. One judge liked the way the lines of repetitive bricks worked with the lines on the skateboard.

Mandy Kotzman of LaPorte earned honorable mention for her shot of a kayaker on the Poudre River. She "caught it in the right spot," one judge noted.

Judges

The Fossil Creek Current and North Forty News thank Charlie Johnson, Tom Skillman and Kate Dardine for volunteering their time to judge this contest. Johnson, a former newspaper photographer, works for Larimer County Engineering and Open Lands. Skillman has owned Skillman Photography in Fort Collins for 38 years. He specializes in portraits, weddings and school photos. Dardine, a fine artist who paints with oils, has worked with Fine Print Imaging for 18 years. Her art is displayed at The Collective, 109 S. College Ave., in Fort Collins.

2007 Contest

Contest categories this year will allow room for lots of creative thinking to make an entry stand out from the pack. Categories are Gardens, Children and Machines.

The contest is open to amateur photographers only. Photos must be taken this calendar year in Larimer or Weld counties. Entry deadline is Jan. 11, 2008. Details and an entry form are now available on this web site.