Students Win Westcott Nature Award

Each year the Photography Club of Beaufort awards ribbons and monetary prizes to local high school students for their work in nature photography. The award is given in memory of Dale Westcott (1940-2005), a club member who was both an educator and an avid nature photographer.

This year the club is still not holding regular monthly meetings so a special “print judging” was scheduled at an outside location and all Board members were invited to attend. Bluffton High School students again took the top three awards and a student from Cross High School received honorable mention.

Kaitlyn Sherman won first place for her image “Barnacles of the Lowcountry.” The judges remarked on the interesting abstract composition and her skill using a short depth of field to bring the viewers eye right into the barnacles She received a check for $100. Second place and $75 was awarded to Alexis Renger for “Springtime,” and Third Place ($50) was awarded to Ian Cruikshank for “Inlets of the May River. Bella Pratt was awarded honorable mention for “Lowcountry Sunset.”

The Photography Club of Beaufort was pleased to be able to award the 15^th annual Dale Westcott Memorial Nature Award while we are still struggling our way through social distancing and limited art/photography class time.