Winners for Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition Announced at Banff

FIXE_0689 — James Fay stands next to “Best in Show” winner, a photo he titled “Brother Carol.” Fay also had two other photos that were finalists. Photos by Ken Ketchie

By Jesse Wood

The winners of the 13th annual Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition were announced in conjunction with the Boone stop of the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour this past weekend.

Nearly 1,200 entries were submitted for this year’s photo competition. Of those, 50 images were selected as finalists. See below the 11 photos that either received awards or honorable mentions.

James Fay, who happens to be a past freelancer to High Country Magazine, had three photos named as finalists – “Brother Carol,” “Killing Hog,” and “Hanging the Top” – in the Culture category – one of which receive top honors as the Best in Show.

His photo, “Brother Carol,” was juried as Best in Show. The image is a portrait of “Brother Carol” playing the banjo at the Pine Mountain Boys Gospel Jubilee in Ashe County. The setting is under a backyard shelter beside a tobacco field.

“An old roommate of mine worked at Tweetsie and he worked with someone who has family that lives out in Pine Mountain,” Fay said. “Every year, they have a gospel jubilee in their backyard. So this was during the gospel jubilee, when they bring in other groups and this guy was part of one of the groups.”

Fay has submitted images to the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition for several years now. Last year, he finally made it as a finalist, and this year he tripled that number as a finalist and came home with the grand prize ($1,000 cash furnished through proceeds and sponsor contributions).

“It’s definitely an honor,” Fay said. “There were so many great photos and great photographs in the exhibit. To just be a finalist in itself is an honor. I am definitely humbled.”

The People’s Choice Award went to Steve Yocom for his photograph, “Winter Fairy Tale.” See all of the awards and recognitions below.

The finalists are on display at the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts until June 4.

Categories for the competition include: Adventure, Blue Ridge Parkway, Culture, Our Ecological Footprint, Flora/Fauna, and Landscape. $4,000 in cash and prizes are made possible through the generous support of the The Mast General Store, The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, Footsloggers Outdoor and Travel Outfitters, and Appalachian Voices.

A portion of the proceeds from the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition support Outdoor Programs Student Outdoor Learning Expeditions at Appalachian State University. SOLE trips are educational journeys of discovery that take students around the world. Visit the Outdoor Programs website to find out more information on the Student Outdoor Learning Expeditions program at ASU.

ASU Outdoor Programs, Turchin Center for the Visual Arts, and Virtual Blue Ridge present the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition and Exhibition, and the Mast General Store sponsors the competition.

Pics From AMPC Reception in Schaefer Center

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