Service above selfies
90 years of The Rotarian’s photo contest
Like the technology we use to take photographs, The Rotarian magazine’s photo contest has evolved over the past 90 years. Our first contest, in 1928, asked readers for their vacation photos. In 1941, a new category was added for color photography. Some years our contest had a single theme, such as “Rotary in Action” (1974) and “Service Above Self” (2006); other years, it featured categories, such as “This Is Rotary” and “This Is My Country” (1961). Photographers no longer send us their submissions through the mail as prints or slides; instead they upload their digital images – often, photos they’ve taken using cellphone cameras and selfie sticks.
The Rotarian photo contest through the years.
Like the technology we use to take photographs, The Rotarian magazine’s photo contest has evolved over the past 90 years. Our first contest, in 1928, asked readers for their vacation photos. In 1941, a new category was added for color photography. Some years our contest had a single theme, such as “Rotary in Action” (1974) and “Service Above Self” (2006); other years, it featured categories, such as “This Is Rotary” and “This Is My Country” (1961). Photographers no longer send us their submissions through the mail as prints or slides; instead they upload their digital images – often, photos they’ve taken using cellphone cameras and selfie sticks.
Through it all, Rotarians have turned their cameras on the world to tell Rotary’s many stories. We’ve seen breathtaking landscapes, expressive images of people, and inspiring shots of Rotary projects. As Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist and 2014 contest judge David Hume Kennerly put it, “There’s no more potent weapon on earth than a concerned eye behind a camera.”
The deadline is approaching for this year’s photo contest. Find some inspiration in these shots from years past and send us your entry by 15 February. Your photo could be the one that inspires Rotarians in years to come.
Tips from experts
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“What are you drawn to? If you’re interested in sunsets or bridges or animals or cityscapes – these things are heavily covered. Clichés can be OK. Just do something with it. Whether it’s through light, framing, or composition, you want to make your picture special.” -- Kathy Ryan, Director of photography for the New York Times Magazine and our 2015 photo contest judge
Alban Saliaga
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“Try to capture a feeling of movement. This is not always easy because photography assumes a moment of repose, even though the subjects are in movement. It helps if the picture appears to be taken by surprise, not posed.” -- Adolfo Casablanca, editor of Vida Rotario, 1973
Jatin Patel
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“I always look for the unusual angle, the imaginative composition, the color, and the contrast. Cropping a large scene to reduce it to its essential ingredients is a final step.” -- Don Brennan, 1960 photo contest judge
Milosz Reterski
