We decided to enter the Wedding & Portrait Photograpers International (WPPI) 16×20 print competition this year in Las Vegas. A number of prints scored high enough to hang in the gallery which is such an honor for us. One print in particular scored higher than the rest, higher that we have ever scored for that matter. And to boot, it was of our daughter Teagan at the Monterey aquarium. This really means a lot to us especially with the story behind the image.

I knew before we went to the aquarium I wanted to get a photograph of Teagan or Reilly looking into an aquarium window. Having never been there, I didn’t quite know what to expect. Teagan and I walked into a room and there were a number of these ‘portals’ for viewing. One problem…they were all full of other people.

As I scanned around the room to find an open window, I lost sight of Teagan…oops.

About the time panic was beginning to set in, I turned around and saw this…Teagan all alone at a window.

I had just enough time to raise my camera to my eye, take a few shots…and she was gone, off to the jellyfish. The final image was better than I had imagined…almost magical for me.

We have posted it before, but here is the final presentation the judges saw. The print title is “World of Wonder”. They also sent us a cool little press release we thought we would share. Thanks again to all of our clients who allow us to explore and create, we are forever grateful.