Garland County 4-H’er takes winning photograph
Hot Springs/Garland County 4-H’er Laney Hunter submitted a winning photograph in the annual 4-H Ross Photography Contest, sponsored by Arkansas 4-H and the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.
Hunter won first place in the Color Living category for her photo of her dog, and won the overall category, Best of Show.
Hunter advanced to the state competition after she won the Garland County contest. This year’s state winners, announced May 1, were selected from county winners from 42 participating counties. More than 400 photos were submitted at the county levels, with the county winners advancing to the state competition.
Photos had to depict Arkansas scenes or subjects.
“The winners showed creativity that rose above the others,” Kerry Rodtnick, extension
photographer and videographer who coordinates the annual competition, said in a news release. “Technical ability is the base of creating a photograph but finding the magic in a scene and telling a story is vital to creating an emotional reaction in a viewer.”
Winners received cash prizes, funded by the Arkadelphia-based Ross Foundation.
The late Jane Ross and her mother, Ester Clark Ross, established the foundation, which administers a philanthropic grants program and manages more than 60,000 acres of timberland, held for conservation purposes.
Jane Ross served in the Women’s Army Corps in the Army Air Force as a photographic technician.
She later operated a photography studio in Arkadelphia before she assumed the responsibilities of managing the family lands, the release said.
Photography is one of many projects that 4-H members can pursue, and the statewide contest is open to 4-H members ages 9-19.
To learn about Arkansas
4-H, visit https://4h.uada.edu/ or contact the Garland County
4-H agent at cmcafee@uada. edu.