We asked for your participation, and boy did you respond.

Although things looked bleak for a while — with only one entry in our office in the weeks leading up to the deadline to enter our first Suffolk Living amateur photo contest — during the final days, the entries poured in.

By the time it was all over, we had received almost 200 entries from photographers who call Suffolk home and from others who were only visiting our fair city. They entered a dazzling array of photos in the four divisions, impressing the judges with their vision and talent.

Judging the contest were Suffolk Living editor Res Spears and designer Troy Cooper, both of whom have years of experience shooting photos for Suffolk Living, the Suffolk News-Herald and other publications.

Joining them in the judging was Brenda Wright, owner of Shooting Star Gallery on North Main Street and an artist with a camera. Wright published a boo k of her own photography, I Have Come This Far, in 2001.

The following pages highlight the best of the photos we received. This year, we named winners and honorable mentions. The true honor, however, was ours, in that so many area amateur photographers decided to let us look through their lenses with them.

Enjoy!

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