If capturing nature’s beauty is a snap …
You might want to enter Nature Preserve’s photography contest
WILL DANNELLY
wdannelly@charlotteobserver.com
Reedy Creek Nature Preserve is offering photography enthusiasts a chance to showcase their talent by capturing the park’s natural beauty through its first photo contest.Reedy Creek’s environmental educator Staci Clark says the contest is an attempt to incorporate photography into environmental education.
“Art can be a huge piece of interpretation for the environment,” Clark said.
The vast artistic options within the protected 727 acres include 156 species of animals, which include broad winged hawks, spotted salamanders, and Gulf Coast spiny softshell turtles.
Hardwood and evergreen forests, along with open fields, miles of hiking trails and three lakes provide participants with a wide variety of landscapes to explore with their viewfinders.
The contest, themed, “Reedy Creek Nature Preserve is a Special Place,” runs through April 1. Organizers hope to make it an annual event.
Contestants are asked to submit pictures of people, wildlife or landscapes taken within the preserve.
Entries will be judged separately by age. First, second, third and “Best of Show” prizes will be picked by qualified community volunteers. Honorable mentions will be left to the judges’ discretion.
All entries will be displayed at Reedy Creek Nature Center from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. May 24.
The park is asking local businesses to donate prizes; interested businesses can e-mail staci.clark@mecklenburgcountync.gov.
Tips for taking good pictures
We asked Observer photographer John Simmons for some tips on how to photograph nature. Here’s what he said:
• Place the picture’s most interesting feature in the horizontal or vertical third of the screen, not dead center.
• Don’t take pictures in the middle of the day. When the sun is at its low points, either early morning or evening, it casts long shadows that add texture and contour to the photo.
• Be patient. Don’t try to take your pictures in 15 minutes.
• The slower you move, the less you spook the wildlife.
• Approach wildlife slowly. Take several pictures every couple of steps you take toward your target.
• Try different angles. Do whatever you can to shoot so it’s not a flat straight-ahead angle.
• Don’t be afraid to get close to shoot the really tight shot. Show what can’t be seen with the naked eye.
Rules for photo entries
• Register by calling Park and Rec at 704-336-7600. Hold for the operator and say you want the program barcode 31145.
• Entry deadline is 5 p.m. April 1 at: Reedy Creek Nature Center, 2900 Rocky River Road, Charlotte, NC 28215.
• Photographs will be judged on composition, general appeal, technical merit and appropriateness to the theme, “Reedy Creek Nature Preserve is a Special Place.”
• Entries will be judged separately according to age.
• There is no limit to the number of entries per participant.
• Photos must be taken at Reedy Creek Nature Preserve.
• Photo size must be 5 x 7 inches or larger.
• All prints must be matted with white or black matte board not exceeding 16 x 22 inches. (There is an example at the nature center).
• Reedy Creek Nature Preserve reserves the right to refuse inappropriate or unsuitable entries.
• Community volunteers not affiliated with Reedy Creek Nature Preserve will judge the contest.
• Prizes: First, second, third, and Best of Show, along with honorable mentions if necessary.
• Reedy Creek Nature Center staff will resolve all first-place ties.
• All entries become the property of Reedy Creek Nature Preserve and Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation and may be used in promotions or exhibits.
• Winning photographs may be reproduced on Park and Recreation’s Web page and in other park and recreation or nature center publications with proper credit given to the photographer.
• Color and black-and-white photos will be judged together.
On the Web
Visit Reedy Creek’s Web site at www.parkandrec.com. Click on Parks in the upper left-hand column. Then click on Nature Preserves, and then on Reedy Creek.
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