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 2008 PHOTO CONTEST WINNER
Using a borrowed camera on a trip to visit her family, 29-year-old Missouri resident Kandice Gerdes snapped "Two Worlds Collide," a striking image that shows the contrasting beauty of a delicate desert flower before a backdrop of red rock canyons. Her shot was judged the best of more than 40 submitted in the Grand Junction Visitor & Convention Bureau's recent Travel Photo Contest. "I have been to Grand Junction before, but it has been at least 15 years," says Kandice. "Things have changed a lot!" She said her grandparents, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews all live in Grand Junction, so when it came time to plan her vacation she decided to pay them a little visit. At the last minute, she borrowed her sister's digital camera to take with her because she expected the drive from Denver into Grand Junction to be beautiful with the mountains in full bloom. Was it ever. After arriving in Grand Junction, her grandparents asked how she wanted to spend the day and started naming a long list of things to see and do in the area. An avid nature lover, Kandice picked a drive through Colorado National Monument. That decision paid off and here, in her own words, is how she stumbled upon the winning image: "We drove all the way up, and it was amazing how every bend in the road showed you another world. There were fall colors, spring colors, rocks and dirt. I begged my grandparents to stop at every spot possible and I'm sure they were ready to take back the invitation! It was just so beautiful that I couldn't stop getting out and taking it all in. I love the way the wind blows up there - so fresh, so strong and so invigorating. "So we stopped at yet another spot, I walked up to the edge and there it was: This beautiful purple flower that was growing from the rock. It reminded me of the Bible where God tells his disciples that given just enough room and a strong foundation, anything can grow and be fruitful. So I decided to take the picture … "I just got down on the ground and started shooting. I'm sure the other people there thought I had lost my mind, but I couldn't pass it up. The way the rich blues in the sky made the purple pop against the red rock, and the way the wood seemed to be reaching up to the sky, basking in the sunlight. It was just so welcoming and freeing, but off in the distance you can see another world, with business meetings and schedules. "I truly believe life is meant to be lived, and when you are that close to something so beautiful you have to stop and really appreciate it." The contest's runner-up was Bob Sprague of Clifton, Colorado, whose distant image of Mt. Garfield is creatively framed by the silhouette of leaves in the foreground. Bob received a box of Grand Junction's own famous Enstrom's Almond Toffee for his efforts. |
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