Sasebo resident Deziree Burton won the Image Makers regional photo contest's 9 years old and under category for her black-and-white photo "Walk in the Morning." (Sara Mizushima/Courtesy of Sasebo Morale, Welfare and Recreation)
SASEBO NAVAL BASE, Japan — Put a camera in a child’s hands and you will get a glimpse into their world.
That is the idea behind Image Makers, the annual Boys and Girls Club of America photography program that challenges children and teens in the Pacific and across the United States to capture their surroundings in pictures.
Photos are judged and overall winning shots are displayed in museums and at the group’s annual national conference.
But first, young Pacific photographers compete in the regional contest, which was held this month at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa. The regional winners in the Pacific were announced Friday and will have a chance to win the overall national photo contest.
The contests are separated into photography categories and age ranges.
The regional winners for color process photos were "Life of Winter" by Stephanie Cepria of Daegu, South Korea, in the 16-18 age group; "Title Unknown" by Jennie Rice of Camp Zama, Japan, in the 13-15 category; "Empty Swing" by Aubreyana Esteves of Guam in the 10-12 category; and "The Old Wheel" by Jennifer Long of Kadena, Okinawa, in the 9 and younger category.
In black and white process, the regional winners were "N/A" by Trey Sauls of Yokota, Japan, in the 16-18 category; "Hot Rod" by Devon Armentrout of Kadena, Okinawa, in the 13-15 category; "My Clone in a Barbaric World" by Benjamin Edlebeck of Kadena, Okinawa, in the 10-12 category; and "A Walk in the Morning" by Deziree Burton of Sasebo, Japan, in the 9 and younger category.
The digital photography winners were "Mother Nature" by Emie Reyes of Daegu, South Korea, in the 16-18 category; "Sunshine Down" by Jennie Rice of Camp Zama, Japan, in the 13-15 category; "In the Tube" by Keiyl Sasano of Camp Zama, Japan, in the 10-12 category; and "National Bridge" by Marcus Burton, of Sasebo, Japan, in the 9 and younger category.
In photo essays, the winners were "The Lotus Field" by Rebekah Harwell, of Iwakuni, Japan, in the 13-15 category; "Yellow Tunnel" by Brooke Gibson of Kadena, Okinawa, in the 10-12 category; and "Be A Photographer" by Shyanne Kline of Yokosuka, Japan, in the 9 and younger category.
The alternative process winners were "Twisted" by Shelby Hadey of Kwajalein in the 16-18 category; "Dreamy Haze" by Michael Huntley of Camp Zama, Japan, in the 10-12 category; and "Where’s the Meat?" by Kyle Mapa of Sasebo, Japan, in the 9 and younger category.
Sasebo resident Deziree Burton won the Image Makers regional photo contest's 9 years old and under category for her black-and-white photo "Walk in the Morning." (Sara Mizushima/Courtesy of Sasebo Morale, Welfare and Recreation)
The photo "National Bridge" by Marcus Burton of Sasebo, Japan, was one of the Pacific region winners this month in the annual Image Makers photography contest. (Courtesy of Sasebo Morale, Welfare and Recreation)
"Where's the Meat?" by Kyle Mapa, of Sasebo Naval Base, Japan, won the regional competition in the annual Image Makers photography contest at Kadena Air Base this month. (Courtesy of Sasebo Morale, Welfare and Recreation)
