2006 International Photo Contest Winners

“A Sense of Place”

1st Place
Kate Renner
“Tokyo’s” Spring Blossoms”
Semester at Sea, Spring 2006

This photo was taken in a garden that was in full bloom with cherry blossoms. In Japan, April is the main tourist season because the blossoms draw in sightseers for 3-4 weeks. The garden was a very romantic setting filled with local couples, young and old strolling amidst the trees. A friend of mine was fulfilling her grandmother’s life goal to see the Japanese cherry blossoms, by capturing the moment to bring home to her grandmother; I just decided to join in the moment by snapping away.

2nd Place
Alex Zoltai
“A London Bus”
AIFS London/Richmond, Fall 2005

A British gentleman waits for a bus in London’s business district, as another bus speeds by. Busses go by in London every few seconds. A bus speeds by a British man as he waits for another one to come. Everywhere you look in London there are busses! A British gentleman waits for his bus here as another speeds by.

3rd Place
“Irony”
Jess Smith
Florence, Italy, Spring 2006

This photo was taken during a day trip I took to Sienna and San Gimigniano in the Tuscan countryside during my spring semester in Florence, Italy. While walking around Sienna’s Piazza del Camp, I found this fountain where the pigeons were enjoying water from the dog’s mouths.

Honorable Mention #1
Nathan LaLiberte
“A Light Shines Through the Darkness”
Catholic Studies, Fall 2005

My brother Alex came to visit me in Rome. While there, I gave him a tour of St. Peter’s Basilica. The light was shinning in the church in a really cool way, and because it was dusty inside, the particles reflected the light beams. I told my brother to stand in one of the side aisles so that I could get the silhouette of his body.

Honorable Mention #2
Calee Brown
“Rhino Crossing”
Intercultural Communication, J-term 2006

On a safari early in the morning, watching rhinos cross the road at the Hluhlhue-Umfolozi game park, capturing the animals of South Africa in their natural habitat.

Honorable Mention #3
Maggie Christensen
“A Peaceful Day in Kiev”
Orthodoxy and Catholicism in Ukraine, J-term 2006

This photo was taken at St. Michaels in Kiev, Ukraine. It was a gorgeous day outside and the sky almost matched the church. I lost my group because I just had to get the perfect shot. This is it!

Intercultural Experience

1st Place
Natasha Goemer
“Angkor Wat”
Semester at Sea, Spring 2006

Angkor Wat is considered to be the largest religious monument in the world. Its temples spread about forty miles throughout Camobida. It is also one of the only religious monuments to have been used by two religions peacefully. First by the Hindu’s who built it and now mainly by the Buddhists who worship in it. Here is a Buddhist monk worshipping within the temple.

2nd Place
Jess Smith
“The Odd Couple”
Florence, Italy, Spring 2006

This photo was taken during my last weekend with my friends in Florence, Italy. We hiked the “Cinque Terre,” which is a beautiful and intense hike between five cities along the Mediterranean Coast. I found these two men relaxing on a bench in the second city, Vernazza. It seemed like the whole city was in the piazza by the sea that day, enjoying live music and the sun. IT was a great way to end my semester in Italy.

3rd Place
“Facing the Past”
Ericka Ashley
SIT: The Balkans, Spring 2006

I took this photo at the sight of the John Lennon wall in Prague, Czech Republic. It captures a student staring at the poetry, lyrics and words of peace left by people from around the world. The wall was originally used to post anti-government complaints, but is now a protected and open canvas for young artists.

Honorable Mention #1
Natasha Goemer
“Amazon Girl Offering Her Pet Sloth”
Semester at Sea, Spring 2006

This February I spent a week living on a houseboat on the Amazon River. During this time, I hiked, swam, fished and met many locals along the river. This is a picture of a young girl who paddled up to our boat and offered us her pet sloth.  

Honorable Mention #2
Allie Tibbetts
“Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire… and they were filled with the Holy Spirit, Acts 2: 3-4”
Catholic Studies, Spring 2006

This photo was taken at the end of the Pentecost Sunday mass held in the Pantheon in Rome, Italy. At the end of the ceremony, roses came pouring down through the circular opening at the top of the Pantheon. Josh Waltz is a seminarian at the North American College in Rome and was praying with rose petals falling around him. Josh was recently ordained to the transitional deaconate and will be ordained to the priesthood this summer, 2007. This inspired the title.

Honorable Mention #3
Katherine Swanson
“The Music in the Piazza”
John Cabot – Rome, Fall 2005

I took this photo while walking through Piazza Navona one day. These two local men would gather to serenade and play their instruments everyday during the hour of noon. For me, it created a neat atmosphere of what it might have been like during days of old. People would gather around and sit all afternoon listening to their lovely music.