Thursday, March 5, 2009

A nice write up in the local paper........................



2 Valley residents' photos in 'Geographic' book
John Stanley

The Arizona Republic

Mar. 4, 2009 07:19 PM


Arizona is renowned for its stunning landscapes, National Geographic for its stunning photography. So maybe it's not surprising that two photographers who earned top honors in National Geographic's "Visions of Paradise" photo contest are from Arizona. Contestants entered more than 2,700 images of places that represent their idea of paradise. Photos submitted by Suzanne Mathia and Tom Prezkop, both of Scottsdale, were among the top 20 selected by National Geographic judges for their creativity, technical skill and composition.
Mathia won for her shot of the blue-green waters of Havasu Falls; Prezkop for his photo of colorful reflections on Oak Creek. Each will receive a copy of the book "Visions of Paradise," released last fall. Like the other 18 winners, their copies will be customized with their own photographs on the front cover. Although contest organizers were pleased with the large number of entries, they were even more gratified by the quality of photographs they received, according to Holly Saunders, a marketing manager with National Geographic. "There's a lot of talent out there," Saunders said.


Havasu Falls
Although Mathia, an insurance underwriter, had been interested in photography since childhood, she never had much time to pursue it. About seven years ago, though, she enrolled in a photography workshop sponsored by Arizona Highways. "That really reignited my interest," she said. Last spring, she and several friends made the long hike down to Havasupai with the sole purpose of shooting as much of the Grand Canyon oasis as they could. For three days, they were out before dawn, balancing on travertine rock and waiting - sometimes for hours - for just the right light. "It turned out to be a lovely shot," she said of the photo she decided to enter after learning about the contest. "But it's hard not to get a good shot at Havasu." "For me, it was never a question of winning," she said. "This was my vision of paradise and I just wanted to share it."

Thursday, February 12, 2009



Press Release



NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ANNOUNCES 'VISIONS OF PARADISE' PHOTO CONTEST WINNERS WASHINGTON (Jan. 27, 2009)—The 20 winning images in National Geographic's "Visions of Paradise" photography contest have been selected. Photographers were asked to submit images that best represented their unique vision of heaven on Earth. The winners will each receive a customized edition of the National Geographic book "Visions of Paradise," with their winning photograph as the cover image.
The winners are:
John Hart of Oconomowoc, Wisc., for two entries: a photo of a frost-covered horse and an image of a child in a fountain.
Mai Le Trinh of Las Vegas for her photo of a sunset on Corona del Mar Beach, California.
Kelsey Hargrove of Orlando, Fla., for an image of a pizza deliveryman in New York's Times Square.
Jorge Fajl of Agoura Hills, Calif., for his image of children on a beach at sunset.
Damien Murphy of Redmond, Wash., for an image of a snowy hill.
Suzanne Mathia of Scottsdale, Ariz., for her photo of Havasu Falls in Arizona.
Mitch Dobrowner of Studio City, Calif., for his photo of Shiprock in New Mexico.
Thomas Prezkop of Scottsdale, Ariz., for an image of Slide Rock in Arizona.
Sarah Le of Alexandria, Va., for her photo of a couple on a bench.
Harry Ogloff of Salmon Arm, British Columbia, Canada, for his photo of a reflection of the Rocky Mountains.
David Pincus of Fayetteville, Ark., for an image of the Wonder Wheel at Coney Island, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Greg Clark of Redding, Calif., for his photo of a sunrise.
Gemm Ferrane of Harwich, Essex, U.K., for his image of an Essex lighthouse.
Sarah Condon of Skaneateles, N.Y., for her photo of a horse rolling in dirt.
Dena Bowman of Amherst, N.Y., for an image of a rock formation in Page, Arizona.
Dieter Turk of Glasgow, Scotland, for his picture of a sailboat.
Joseph Romeo of Lorton, Va., for an image of a red barn.
Andrea Robinson of Santa Cruz, Calif., for a photo of waves on a beach.
Louis Decarlo of Edinburgh, Scotland, for his photo of the ocean off the Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides.
The competition ran in conjunction with the publication of the book "Visions of Paradise," in which National Geographic photographers were asked to provide images that reflected what they considered as perfect, spellbinding or most divine in the world.The winning "Vision of Paradise" contest images can be viewed at the competition Web site, www.nationalgeographic.com/myvision.