Blue Ridge Parkway Journeys

The Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition Opening Reception takes place on Friday, February 3, 2012 along with the start of voting for the AMPC People’s Choice Award.  49 finalist images will be on display from February 3 through June 2 at the Turchin Center for the Visual arts on the Campus of Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina.

Cast your vote for the coveted People’s Choice Award via a kiosk at the exhibition or online at www.appmtnphotocomp.org.  Voting officially begins with the public reception opening at 7:00 pm, Friday, February 3 and voting will close at 5:00 pm on Friday, March 30, 2012.  The winner of the People’s Choice award receives a $350 cash award furnished by Footsloggers Outdoor and Travel Outfitter in Boone and Blowing Rock.

Winners will be announced after March 30, 2012 once votes have been tallied for the People’s Choice Award.

Visit Virtual Blue Ridge to read more about the press release for this year’s People’s Choice Award. We wish everyone the best of luck in choosing your favorite for this year’s PCA, it definitely won’t be quick and easy!

Thank you to all photographers who submitted to the 9th annual Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition. This year’s panel of judges have selected 49 images for exhibition at the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts.

Congratulations from the organizers and sponsors of the AMPC to all the selected photographers and a sincere thank you to everyone who submitted photographs for consideration sharing their vision of the people, places and pursuits that distinguish the Southern Appalachians.

And the finalists are . . . Read more »

Chris Austin Songwriting Finalists at MerleFest 2011

Entries will be accepted from November 1, 2011 until February 18, 2012.

MerleFest 25, presented by Lowe’s Home Improvement, is proud once again to host the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest. Now in its 20th year, the contest is an extraordinary opportunity for aspiring writers to have their original songs heard and judged by a panel of Nashville music industry professionals, under the direction of this year’s volunteer contest chairperson, Grammy®-winning singer/songwriter Jim Lauderdale. MerleFest 25 takes place from April 26-29, 2012.

Contest entries for the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest (CASC) will be accepted beginning November 1 via two methods:

1. U.S. Mail (P.O. Box 121855, Nashville, TN 37212)
2. The Sonicbids website

The deadline for submissions is February 18, 2012.

“The Chris Austin Songwriting Contest is an incredible opportunity for songwriters to get their works heard publicly and by professionals in the business,” says Laurie Brintle, CASC coordinator. “We encourage all amateur songsmiths to take advantage of this contest. Don’t miss this chance to compete at MerleFest 25 and be a part of this historic event!”

The contest recognizes winners in four categories—country, bluegrass, gospel/inspirational and general. To be eligible to enter, a songwriter must not derive more than 50 percent of his or her total income from songwriting or music publishing. Details about entry fees, eligibility and other requirements are available at the Chris Austin website.

Once submitted, songs are judged by a volunteer panel of Nashville songwriters, publishers and other music industry professionals. Judging is based on a song’s originality, lyrics, melody and overall commercial potential. Twelve finalists, three from each category, will be announced during the first week of April 2012. Each of the twelve finalists will enjoy admission and lodging for three nights at MerleFest, will receive a mentoring session with Jim Lauderdale, and will compete on the Austin Stage at MerleFest 25. In addition, the first place winners will receive a performance slot on the Cabin Stage on Friday of the festival.

Previous winners of the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest include Gillian Welch, Tift Merritt, Michael Reno Harrell, Adrienne Young, Martha Scanlan, David Via and Johnny Williams.

Net proceeds from the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest support the Wilkes Community College Chris Austin Memorial Scholarship. Since its inception the scholarship has awarded over $35,000 to 73 deserving students.

For additional information about the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest, call the contest hotline at 1-800-799-3838 or email Laurie Brintle, CASC coordinator.

About Chris Austin:

Chris Austin, from Boone, North Carolina, worked as a sideman for Ricky Skaggs for three years, singing and playing guitar, banjo, mandolin and fiddle. During that time he was discovered by executives at Warner Bros. Nashville, who offered him a recording contract. While releasing singles including “Blues Stay Away From Me,” “I Know There’s a Heart in There Somewhere” and “Out of Step,” Austin also developed his songwriting skills, as evidenced in “Same Ol’ Love,” recorded by Skaggs in 1991.

On March 16, 1991, Austin’s life was cut tragically short when the private plane carrying him and six other members of Reba McEntire’s band, as well as her tour manager, crashed in the mountains near San Diego.

Pete Fisher, then of Warnersongs and currently general manager of the Grand Ole Opry, and Kari Estrin, then MerleFest consultant and Pickin’ for Merle video associate producer, initiated the songwriting contest to honor Austin’s memory.

This year’s jurors for the 9th Annual Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition have been announced!

“All of our jurors this year are passionate about the outdoors, possess a significant and varied photographic background, and have been committed to the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition in some way over the years,” states AMPC Competition Director, Rich Campbell. “We are thrilled to have these individuals be a part of the AMPC who are dedicating their time, talent, and expertise to the competition this year.”

William A. Bake

William A. Bake has photographed the South for over 35 years and has created five successful books as well as booklets, prints, and posters. Considered one of the South’s premier landscape photographers, Bake has captured many of the unique landscapes found in the southern Appalachians.

Among his published photography books are Wayfarer: A Voice from the Southern Mountains with James Dickey; The American South: Four Seasons of the Land and Towns and Cities, both with James J. Kilpatrick; and The Blue Ridge. In addition to being a well-regarded photographer, Bake is also an accomplished writer and interpreter of the natural and cultural heritage of the United States.

Ellen Gwin

Ellen Gwin grew up in a family full of artists and fell in love with photography in middle school. Having graduated from Appalachian State University with a double major in Technical Photography and Communication, Gwin has been working professionally as a photographer ever since. She enjoys shooting photography in both film and digital formats.

Passionate about her home in western North Carolina and the amazing natural and outdoor resources available, Gwin strives to promote these resources at every given chance.

Andrew Miller

Andrew Miller developed a passion for photography in the mid-nineties when he began capturing the wild and unique places he found himself working in as an outdoor educator and guide. He continues to work as a freelance photographer capturing the work of artists for print, web, and archival purposes and has had images published in fine art catalogs and WNC Magazine.

While working at Appalachian State University, Andrew developed the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition and Exhibition and oversaw the competition through the first 8 years.

This year’s competition deadline is fast approaching! Be sure to get your photos uploaded by 5:00 pm Friday, November 18, 2011.

From Rich Campbell, Competition Director for the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition

Rich Campbell

The AMPC has grown into one of the most prestigious regional photography competitions and we aim to strengthen that position. We have developed a very strong partnership with local entities such as the Turchin Center, the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, Virtual Blue Ridge, Appalachian Voices, the Mast General Store, Bistro Roca, Footsloggers, Peabody’s, Stick Boy Bread Company, and others.

Connections in the community create so many opportunities for us as a competition. We really want this to continue to be a true community event. We want people who visit the exhibition in the Turchin Center between February and June to feel like they have just seen the best collection of images available that depict the unique character, people, places, and pursuits that distinguish the Southern Appalachians.

I have been Associate Director at ASU Outdoor Programs for 15 years, and am thrilled to be more closely linked to the competition. I have directed the Banff Film Festival every year since its inception and I am excited to work closely with both the photography competition and film festival this year. The two events complement one another so well that it is a natural progression.

2011 Banff Film Festival Audience

We have intentionally created the AMPC to be a part of the Banff Film Festival weekend. That weekend has really turned into a celebration of mountain culture. The Banff Film Festival brings films from all over the globe highlighting mountain culture. The AMPC is a way for our community to interact, in a very personal level through photography, with our own mountain region and community. We have Banff bring us films from all corners of the globe, and we have our own community showcasing new aspects of our beloved Southern Appalachian region through the AMPC. It is a great ‘local to global festival’ on mountain culture every spring, right here in Boone.

Our Student Outdoor Learning Expeditions (SOLE) are programs and trips that are longer and they travel to more diverse locations in North America and abroad. SOLE programs emphasize discovery of self and expedition team members – as well as discovery of the landscapes and cultures of the wilderness areas and countries we explore. We travel in regions of countries that are seldom visited, remote and exceptionally beautiful. Traveling in these settings through adventure education, students learn valuable skills in leadership, perseverance, group dynamics, teamwork, responsibility, wilderness ethics and global perspectives.

[Video for New Zealand SOLE Trip]

Proceeds from the Banff Film Festival and the AMPC make these experiences, that many students share with us as life changing, more accessible to more students.

We encourage photographers to enter this competition regardless of their previous experience. We do have professional photographers who enter, but we have also had plenty of success with amateur photographers in the past, including amateurs who have captured Best in Show. Photographers who capture a unique perspective of a familiar landscape or an interesting take on a familiar subject tend to do really well in this competition.

One of the primary goals of the AMPC is to encourage photographers to grab their camera and create their own story that they want to share with our community. When hundreds of people do this, the end result is a powerful exhibition and an important archive of what is so special to our own mountain community that we call home.

Deadline for submitting entries is Friday, November 18, 2011 at 5:00 pm. Follow Virtual Blue Ridge Parkway and the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition on Facebook for all the latest updates and news.