Capture the Color Photography Contest

I’m really not one for entering contests. Primarily because like most people, I think my chances of winning are so small, why waste my time? But this contest buzzing about the interwebs, Travel Supermarket’s Capture the Color, got me to change my mind. Plus, I was nominated by the awesome Christine Gilbert of Almost Fearless, so really, how could I refuse? The prizes of an new iPad 3 for individual photos or the 2000£ grand prize are a pretty nice incentive too.

Here’s the deal; there are five photos, one for each color; blue, green, yellow, white and red. Each color will be voted on by an individual judge (blue: Ken Kaminesky, green: Abi King, yellow: Dave & Deb, white: Christine Gilbert and red: Daniel Nahabedian) so don’t worry, you don’t have to do anything. You the reader just get to enjoy. And maybe, if you’re new here, you’ll find something interesting in one of the older posts from which some of these photos originate.

Blue:

This photo was taken over a wall behind the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul Turkey. I love the contrasts in this photo; the bright blue workman’s uniforms with the faded blue of the building and the softness of the white blossoms on the tree with the stone wall behind it.

Green:

These are leaf cutter ants in Panama. The sheer industriousness and organization of these ant colonies in the jungle is absolutely mind-boggling. They can completely dismantle a tree and move the it to their home in a matter of hours.

Yellow:

Cambodia holds a very special place in my heart. I’ve been three times in the last ten years and if I’m fortunate, I’ll make a fourth trip next summer. While most of my time in Cambodia focuses on working toward a brighter future with the Ponheary Ly Foundation, this photo highlights the darker past of the country. The picture was taken at S21, a former school in the center of Phnom Penh which was used to interrogate and torture people during the Khmer Rouge genocide. It’s a stark reminder of what can happen when we forget the importance of diversity and education in our culture. This is Ponheary’s mission; to educate every child because she believes education will prevent these types of atrocities in the future.

White:

This photo was taken in the Royal Place in Madrid, Spain. These windows fascinated me because they are so old that you can see the distortion in them made from the hand blown glass. It gives a different perspective on the view outside across the courtyard and makes me think of what it would have been like to live there in another era. While it’s not bright white, I think the faded paint and aged stone just add to the patina of history.

Red:

The Fushimi Inari shrine outside Kyoto Japan really blew my mind. Set on a hillside, thousands of sacred torii gates, each with an inscription from the benefactor who donated to the shrine to put them up. It’s a peaceful (and sometimes strenuous) walk through the forest and under the gates, and well worth the short trip by train to get there.

As a participant, I also get to nominate five of my favorite fellow travel bloggers:

Walkingon Travels
Eephemera and detritus
No Vacation Required
Restless to Roam
The Road Forks