Michelle Hight's photograph, titled Bath Time, was the overall winner in the Martinborough Village Summer Pix Competition 2016. PHOTO/MICHELLE HIGHT
Michelle Hight's photograph, titled Bath Time, was the overall winner in the Martinborough Village Summer Pix Competition 2016. PHOTO/MICHELLE HIGHT
Martinborough woman Michelle Hight has won the 2016 Martinborough Village Summer Pix Competition.
Her winning black and white photograph, titled Bath Time, was taken in the height of summer and features children in a claw foot bath tub in Tora at The Cookhouse, a cooking school and homestay on Tora Settlement Rd.
In the bath is Ms Hight's daughter, her nephew and nieces and sister-in-law, Martinborough winemaker Lisa Coney of Coney wines.
The competition was held by Martinborough Village and began last year as a way to showcase the region through experiences captured by locals and visitors alike.
Entries had to be summer-themed and taken in the Martinborough area.
Second place went to David Hirst for his "technically sound" summer landscape at end of day entitled Te Muna Road.
Rochelle Holloway came third for her "gorgeously honest and intensely fun" photo, named River Friends, Summer Days, of a girl at a river with her dog.
Ms Hight, who owns horse trekking business Patuna Farm Adventures, said she was a hobby photographer and had learnt photography at school over two decades ago.
She had used her new Canon 70D to take the winning shot on a family summer getaway.
"They just all piled into the outside bath and I thought it would make a cool photo and it did."
Ms Hight was not the only winner in her family at the competition's prizegiving at Peppers Parehua, a major sponsor, on Sunday afternoon.
David Hirst made second place in the Martinborough Village Summer Pix Competition 2016 with his photograph titled Te Muna Road. PHOTO/DAVID HIRST
Her son George Hight-Darling came first in the under-13 category.
Ms Hight is the person riding the horse in George's winning photograph.
She said the competition was an "awesome" way to promote her home town.
"Some of the photographs were amazing. I'm quite surprised I won actually."
For the second year running the competition was judged by professional photographers from the region: Brooke Hoskins, Pete Monk, John Casey and Emma Mehlhopt, who assessed several hundred images.
The judges said Ms Hight's photograph was "delightfully real, fun, and a simply lovely representation of summer in our region".
"The choice here of black and white adds enormously to the whole: beautiful textures to the bath, fence, blurred landscape beyond -- and bringing clarity and focus to the pure enjoyment captured in this summertime image."
Organiser Trish Higginson said people from all over the region had entered with the furthest entrant from Queensland.
She said the competition was a huge success with over 30 local businesses donating prizes.
"The competition is run independently of funding and we are looking at sourcing bigger sponsorship next year to keep the viability.
"There are many hours involved and costs in promoting."
Mrs Higginson wished to thank Wairarapa Building society who assisted with some competition costs.
"We believe there is no stronger marketing than what people experience, and bringing a mosaic of those experiences into the village hub is evocative and inspirational.
