January 17, 2017 – John Warden’s photograph of “Snowy Owl at Sunset” was announced as the winner of the Best Photo of the Year by the Nevada County Camera Club at their annual awards dinner on January 14. Warden’s photo was selected by club members from over 750 photos submitted by members throughout the year.
“I am delighted that this photo caught the attention of club members. I became serious about improving my photography about seven years ago after I retired. Since I have long been interested in wildlife, it was natural to combine that with photography. Early in 2016, I spent a week photographing snowys in southern Canada, west of Montreal. At the end of my fifth day with the owls, we spotted this female on the fencepost as we looked into the setting sun. I was fortunate to catch her just after takeoff as she was watching us,” said John Warden, member of the Nevada County Camera Club.
The winners of eight different photo categories were also announced and included: Kathy Triolo for Best Assigned Subject, with “Frozen”; Barbara Summers for Best Black and White, with “Chinese Man and his Water Pipe”; Kathy Triolo for Best Color, with “Wagon Wheel at Sunset”; Janet Peters for Best Creative Interpretation, with “Spenceville Corral”; Ron Horne, with “Emigrant Gap After the Storm” and Peter Mason, with “Ancients Reaching for the Stars” for Best Nature Landscapes; John Warden for Best Nature Wildlife, with “Snowy Owl at Sunset”; Nolan Thornberry, for Best People, with “Lindsey Stirling at Red Rocks”; Anna Woodhall, for Best Photojournalism, with “Wild Ride”; Janet Peters, for Best Technical, with “Up in the Tree Tops”; and David Wong for Best Travel, with “Pointe Santa Trinita”.
The awards are based on votes from camera club members. Each month, members submit photos to be critiqued during the meetings and for a later vote. From the top monthly winners, members vote for the best photos of the year. “The members of our Camera Club are continually improving the quality of their photographs. We all vote for the best picture of the year and the task of choosing is becoming more and more difficult each year. The 2016 photos were all so good,” stated Douglas Hooper, President of the Camera Club. The 2016 award winning photographs are on the club’s website (www.nccameraclub.com ) as well as all photos submitted by members.