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Winners of photo contest announced
Winners of the 2011 Town of Carstairs photo contest were announced at the January 23 town council meeting.
The 55 submitted photo entries were displayed on the wall of council chambers. Mayor Colby and the town councillors were asked to select their first and second choices.
“There are so many good photos,” said Mayor Colby. “This is a tough decision.”
The contest was started in order to increase the town’s picture library, said Brenda Cole, communications coordinator with the Town of Carstairs.
“We accepted present day and historical photos,” Cole added. “Categories included year-round attractions in the Carstairs area, trendy businesses, arts and culture, family fun, history and annual events.
“We were looking for what best depicts our town.”
First-place winner was Eleanor Braun with her photograph titled Family on Slide.
“My son and his wife and family were visiting in August and we all went to the elementary school playground,” Braun said. “I used my Canon digital T1i, which is a fairly basic digital camera.”
Braun – who has resided in Carstairs for six years - entered 19 of her photos, which included images of birds in the marsh. “I love the small town feel of Carstairs and the friendliness of the people,” she said. “The countryside around the town is really nice for taking pictures.”
Braun has won a $100 chamber of commerce gift certificate.
Winning second prize was Allan Morrison with his photo of the Carstairs Information Centre, titled ‘Information’ and with an accompanying caption that read ‘A little colour after a heavy rainstorm.’
“When I think of Carstairs, the information centre is what comes to mind,” said Morrison, when asked to describe why this photo exemplified Carstairs. “It’s a definitive structure in the town. I imagine some time ago grain elevators were a common site in this area.
“It was one of the first places I stopped at when I moved to Carstairs to learn a little of the community and what it had to offer.”
Morrison has lived in Carstairs for nearly three years and he said he enjoys how close the town is to the mountains. “I also enjoy the music festival that’s held here every year,” he said. “I also think the people I have met in the area are great individuals.”
For the past five years, he has been a photo buff, and has taken several courses in digital photography and photoshop. He captured the winning image – which he described as a spur-of- the-moment decision - with his Nikon D60 DSLR camera, using an 18-55 mm lens.
“I noticed from my home that the sun was coming out after the rainstorm,” he said. “With the moisture and the sun, everything had great colours.”
Those colours, however, presented an obstacle.
“The challenge I had with this picture was ensuring the colours and contrast of the rainbow was adequate enough with the different lighting conditions,” Morrison said. “I really wanted to showcase the building and the rainbow in this picture. I also wanted to ensure all the items came across in the picture such as shadowing, the signpost and overall bright feel after a storm.”
He won a $50 gift certificate from the chamber of commerce.
In addition, the two winning entries are highlighted on the town’s website at www.carstairs.ca.
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