Honorable mentions
Ashley Carreiro Fresno County Farm Bureau
Larry Speed Stanislaus County Farm Bureau
Ashley Carreiro grew up around sheep, watching shearing in the spring and feeding baby lambs in the fall. “Now, I’m taking my two daughters to do the same thing,” she said. For Carreiro’s winning photo, a different type of fluffy substance caught her eye. With her ISO on its lowest setting, Carreiro focused on the emerging buds of cotton on a friend’s farm in Riverdale during a scenic sunset. In addition to being featured in Ag Alert ® and California Bountiful ® magazine as a winner, her photos also appear as artwork in the farm insurance agency where she works.
Larry Speed carefully set up his tripod to catch this shot of a nighttime harvest of almonds, using a long exposure and careful timing to capture the shaking of the trees. But he didn’t have to set any alarm to get this photo—he was already awake. “When they’re shaking the trees, well, it shakes our house,” said Speed, who lives on part of a 400-acre almond farm called Superior Fruit Ranch. Speed makes the best of the shaking season, using photography to share the “round-the-clock, necessary things that farmers do to get done what needs to get done.”
Budding Artists
First Place Ashley Jansen, age 12 Colusa County Farm Bureau
Second Place Natalie Webb, age 10 Sonoma County Farm Bureau
Ashley Jansen knows the extensive history of her family farm, first acquired via a land grant 150 years ago. The land is now primarily used to grow almonds instead of the sugar beets of yesteryear, she said. The almond orchards surround Ashley’s house, bursting with blooms and perfect for a scenic walk with Sydney, her dog. While strolling the orchards with Sydney, Ashley stopped to focus on the delicate white blooms when a pollinating bee entered her shot. Even though she took the photo, Ashley gives credit to Sydney, who “led me to the perfect photo opportunity.”
Super fans of this photo contest will recognize this budding photographer, who earns accolades for her artwork for the fourth straight year. Natalie, who lives in St. Helena in Napa County, focused on the vibrantly green “baby grapes” in the vineyard behind her house, which she passes every day on the way to school. It took time to find the most photogenic bunch, said Natalie, who hunted throughout the vineyard before finding this shot. Natalie stays in the moment while shooting photos, relying on spontaneity and her mom’s iPhone. Natalie said she hopes to get her own iPhone someday.
January 3, 2024 Ag Alert 13
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