Photo Contest Musings

By BRIAN K. KROLICKI | September/October 2012

Photo: John T. Humphrey (Carson Valley Owl)

Dear Friends,

As I enjoyed viewing the finalists as a judge in Nevada Magazine’s 2012 Great Nevada Picture Hunt photo contest, I was reminded of one of my favorite duties when I was State Treasurer.

My office had the privilege of conducting the contest for the design of Nevada’s quarter. After hundreds of entries and tens of thousands of votes, the final choice depicted a trio of wild horses, with the sun setting behind snow-capped mountains and framed by the state flower, sagebrush.

Like the Nevada Quarter Contest, I saw many familiar and well-loved subjects in this year’s photo contest—Nevada’s wild mustangs, desert bighorn sheep, Hoover Dam, and the Silver State’s rich mining heritage, to name a few.

The finalists in the City Limits and Wide Open categories clearly show the photographers’ love and appreciation for Nevada’s magnificent and varied landscape. The images took me on a journey of incredible vistas spanning the state: west to Lake Tahoe and Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation, south past Walker Lake and Tonopah’s Crescent Dunes, and southeast to Cathedral Gorge State Park and Hoover Dam. I also saw the fabulous new architecture that continually changes the Southern Nevada skyline.

During my travels around the state over the last 22 years, I have seen firsthand so many of Nevada’s gorgeous panoramic views and have driven through its quaint historic towns. The comparison shots in the Then & Now category showed both how much has changed over the years and, in some places, how much has stayed the same.

I’m sure I’ve met some of the folks portrayed in the People section during my travels—or at least a close relative! These diverse faces show our state’s unique character. Nevada’s varied wildlife is another favorite subject and is well represented in the Nature category. Photos of a camel from the Virginia City International Camel Races and a “snickering” wild mustang could have been entered in the People category their faces are so expressive.

Thrilling sightings of Nevada’s wildlife—mustangs, bobcats, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, and our many feathered friends are waiting for visitors who stray off the beaten path. The colorful American white pelicans at Pyramid Lake and the bald eagles of Carson Valley make for great photo opportunities. My windows at the State Capitol in Carson City frame a visiting owl or two every spring.

I invite you to take an armchair tour of Nevada through the creative lenses of these talented shutterbugs as you admire the winning entries of the 2012 Great Nevada Picture Hunt. Enjoy! 

Brian K. Krolicki
Lieutenant Governor
Chairman—Nevada Commission on Tourism
ltgov.nv.gov