Winning photo a glowing tribute to reading

A thought-provoking image of a 74-year-old woman combining technology with tradition has taken the top prize in the Live it, Love it, Learn it… Snap it! photographic competition.

Facilitated by Cairns Libraries in partnership with Tropical North Queensland TAFE, the competition encouraged entrants to submit a photo of themselves or a friend reading.

Mayor Bob Manning said the competition aimed to rekindle a love of books in the National Year of Reading.

“The idea was to snap a photo in any place where reading can happen – the more creative the better,” Cr Manning said.

“There was a wide variety of ideas and we were pleasantly surprised by the standard of the photos.”

A total of 195 entries were received from people of all ages and from all parts of the Cairns region.

The winner was Clifton Beach man Colin McCloud, who captured the stunning image of his wife, Theresa reading a library book by the gentle glow of her iPad.

“This image captured the imagination of the judges, who found the lighting and composition of the photo to be particularly outstanding,” Cr Manning said.

“But the judges faced such a difficult task that the intended two runners-up actually became four.”

Runners-up prizes have been presented to Jayden Kubach, Laura Abdalla, Tanya Moro and Vivienne Dixon, whose photos captured an equine friendship, an early start to reading, an underwater adventure and waterskiing skill respectively.

The winning photos will be displayed in all Cairns Libraries branches.