Bruce Hartsell
Members of the Photography Club of Quail Creek recently voted to select winners in the Fourth Quarter Challenge, which focused on “The Hand of Man.” This quarterly challenge featured the most submissions ever (57) and the closest voting, with only 0.25 points separating the first- and second-place winners.
Mark Cohen won first place with Tracks to Tumacácori, taken south of Quail Creek with his smartphone. Mark commented, “The convergence of the tracks and the contrast of the tracks with the landscape made the scene very compelling. I pulled off the road, got out, and spent a few minutes trying different compositions. A Border Patrol truck drove up the dirt road at the side of the tracks, so I had to wait a while until all the dust blew away.” f/2,8, 1/389 sec, 182 mm, ISO 64.
Larry Hudson won second place with Roman Aqueduct, a photo he took in Southern France during a trip down the Rhône River. The structure was built during the first century over the River Gardon and is one of the more famous and well-preserved Roman aqueducts. He took the photo with his iPhone 11 Pro Max. f/1.8, 1/480 sec, 4.2 mm, ISO 32.
Dave Hammel won third place with Montezuma Castle at Montezuma Castle National Monument, which is just off I-17 near Camp Verde. His shot was taken on the loop trail a good distance back and was framed by the mature sycamores with fall leaves. The Sinagua people built the structures about 1100 to 1425 CE. He captured the image with his Samsung Galaxy A54 phone, f/1.8, 1/3200 sec, 5.5 mm, ISO 40.
The Photography Club of Quail Creek has a quarterly photo challenge with an established theme, and members vote for the best photos. Photos submitted to the quarterly challenge must have been taken within the quarter, and extensive post-processing is allowed.
Club meetings are held the second Wednesday of the month at 6:30 p.m., usually at the Kino Conference Center Mesquite Room. The club also schedules episodic photo field trips and educational meetings. Consult the club’s website at www.pcqc.org as well as the weekday HOA What’s Happening for additional information. Membership is open to all Quail Creek residents.