Cave Creek Museum celebrates photography contest winners

MARC BUCKHOUT ~ MANAGING EDITOR ~7/6/2011

Cave Creek Museum’s “Write with Light” Photography Competition will announce its winners during a reception and exhibit from 4:30 – 6 p.m. on Saturday at the Desert Foothills Library.
The free event will include the work of 30 photographers including 24 semifinalists
and the six winners.
The competition was formerly part of the Cave Creek Film and Arts Festival.
“We are pleased that the Museum could step in and continue this wonderful competition after the Cave Creek Film & Arts Festival dissolved,” Evelyn Johnson, the Museum’s execuite director said. “Since photos are such an important part of our history here in Cave Creek, the Museum is a logical partner to facilitate capturing today’s history for tomorrow with photos that tell the story through the photographer’s eyes.”
Professional photographer Jerry Sieve, famous for his photos published in Arizona Highways and who has helped in putting the contest together, said the pair of judges that considered more than 100 entries looked for a couple things in picking six winners, three in the adult category and three in the youth category, which was for ages 12-18.
“The easiest thing to say is simplicity,” Sieve said. “Photographs tell stories,” he said. “They’re a visual art form, but if somebody is looking at an image and doesn’t understand it because there is too much information in the shot they’ll be confused and stop looking at it. The camera shows everything. People have a tendency to focus on one thing and fail to notice the whole frame. Our best ones have a clear focus.”
First place in the adult division receives $750, followed by $500 for second place and $250 for third place. The youth division gives $250, $100 and $50 to its top three finishers.
When it comes to subject matter Sieve said the entries run the gamut.
“We’ve got everything from a dancer to landscapes, a lot of flowers and wildlife, but then we have entries where it’s hard to figure out what they are,” he said.
The Desert Foothills Library is located at 38443 North School House Road in Cave Creek. For information, call 480-488-2764, or visit www.cavecreekmuseum.org