Photography
Eugenia Won a “Judges Choice” and an “Honorable Mention at the Orange County Fair
My little backyard hummingbird is a star!
For years, I have admired, and been in a bit of awe, of the photographs on the walls of the Orange County Fair Photography Exhibition. I always said, “Someday, I’ll enter a photo and see what happens.”
Well, this year was the someday! I entered ten photos and really had no expectations. So, I was just delighted when I found out that “Eugenia Likes to Play with Water Droplets” — a photo of one of our little backyard female hummingbirds playing in the water fountain — had made it through the first round of judging and was going to be up on the walls.
From what I can tell and from what I’ve heard from another participant, about 7,000 photos were entered. I counted up the photos on the spreadsheet sent out to all who made it through that round, and it looks like 675 photos made it that far.
We’d already had a little sneak peek that “Eugenia Likes to Play with Water Droplets” had gotten an “Honorable Mention” from a friend who had gone and scoped it out, and I was so excited.
So last night, we went to the Orange County Fair last to check out the photography gallery and see “Eugenia Likes to Play with Water Droplets” and all of the other photos. But I almost didn’t even realize until we were about to leave that she’d also won a “Judges Award” — one of what looks to me to be nine “Judge’s Awards.” It wasn't a first, second, or third place, but it was the tier after that. Yay, Eugenia!!!!
I thought that some of you who’ve read about the antics of the hummingbirds in my yard, like Big Red, Einstein, Eugenia, and Buzz, would be excited.
Erika Burkhalter is a yogi, neurophilosopher, cat-mom, photographer, and lover of travel and nature, spreading her love and amazement for Mother Earth’s glories, one photo, poem or story at a time. (MS Neuropsychology, MA Yoga Studies).
You might also enjoy Eugenia’s story:
Or Big Red’s:
Or Einstein’s:
Or Buzz’s:
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Photos and story ©Erika Burkhalter. All rights reserved.