Touchstone Energy Cotton Festival
Saturday, November 6, 2010
10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Voted "Best Festival In Harnett County"

• Arts & Crafts Galore
• Tours Through The Cotton Gin
• Carriage Rides
• Great Food
• Carnival Rides in the ABC Pediatrics Kiddy Land
• Antique Tractors
• Classic Car Show
• Live Entertainment (2 Stages)
• Cotton Photo Contest
• Cotton Poster Contest

For more information call the Dunn Area Tourism Authority, (910) 892-3282 or visit www.nccottonfestival.com

Photography Contest

Grab your camera and head to the nearest cotton field. It's time again to snap those photos to enter in to the Touchstone Energy Cotton Festival Photo Contest. Cash prizes totaling $1,000 will be awarded. The adult category will net the following cash prizes:

• 1st place - $400
• 2nd place - $200
• 3rd place - $100

View 2010 Contest Rules

The winner from each of the high school, middle school and elementary school categories will win their choice of a $75 cash prize. Best of Show, which can be selected from any category, will win a $75 cash prize.

Deadline for photo submission is the close of business (5 p.m.) October 15, 2010.

Judges will award a first, second, third place and student categories, Best of Show is selected on the day of the Touchstone Energy Cotton Festival.

All winning entries will appear at the festival and may be used in future promotion of the festival and in publications of South River EMC. If you have questions, call Julie Wahl at (910) 892-8071 or visit www.nccottonfestival.com

Photos are not accepted via e-mail.

Tips For Taking Good Photographs

•Ensure that your camera's flash is turned off when shooting landscapes, unless you require it to brighten a foreground object. Flash in a dusty, misty or foggy scene may cause glare by reflecting off the droplets of moisture or dust particles.

•The quality of lighting can be the most influential attribute of a successful landscape. Waiting for interesting lighting that is moody, dramatic or diffused usually pays off in a memorable photograph. Use a tripod to ensure sharpness, especially in low-light conditions.

•Don't let the weather stop you from capturing an attractive landscape. Rain can add a degree of softness and peacefulness to a scene. On an overcast day, be sure your scene has an area of color in it to counteract the overall dull lighting.

•Frame the scene so that it contains a center of interest - an object that draws the viewer's eye into the picture.

•Keep the rules of composition in mind when framing a scene. Lines, in particular, can be a strong factor in making an interesting landscape. Also, placing the center of interest off-center, in accordance with the rule of thirds, will create a harmonious composition.

•Lastly, landscape photography is often more horizontal than it is vertical, presenting the opportunity to shoot a panorama. If you are faced with a wide vista and your camera has a panorama mode, this is the time to select it. Cropping afterwards can achieve a similar purpose.

Tips taken from www.photographytips.com.

If you'd like to see a tip a day, visit 100 photography tips for 100 days by Adorama Imaging Resource Center.

Part I

Part II

Part III

2010 Poster Contest

Start creating! South River EMC is taking entries for the Touchstone Energy Cotton Festival Poster Contest. Children must be grades K-5. All entries are due to the Cooperative by Friday, October 8 at 5 p.m. Take this idea to the art teacher! Print out the information here.

Participating schools include:
Appleworks Private School
Cape Fear Christian Academy
Coats Elementary
Erwin Elementary
Faith Academy
Gentry Primary
Harnett Primary
Plain View Elementary
Wayne Avenue Elementary
Midway Elementary
District 7 Elementary

Contest Rules:
• The theme of the poster must be cotton.
• Art must be 12” x 18” on sturdy materials such as foam board, etc. Larger and/or smaller artwork will not be accepted.
• The art will be judged on use of the theme, neatness, creativity, and age appropriateness (the work must be the child’s own).
• Submissions must include the child’s name, age, school, grade and home phone number on the back of the poster.
• Limit one entry per child.

Prizes:
• Touchstone Energy Cotton Festival first place winners will receive a ride wristband (for the festival), a festival t-shirt, a medal and a certificate.
• Touchstone Energy Cotton Festival second place winners will receive a festival t-shirt, a medal and a certificate.
• Grade winners from each school will receive a prize and a certificate of participation.

*Students can be as creative as they like, and are able to add extra material (for example actual cotton), as long as it does not affect the size of the paper.
Students’ posters will hang in downtown Dunn the week of and during the Touchstone Energy Cotton Festival. Winners will receive prizes and special recognition at the festival on Saturday, November 7.

For more information or for questions please contact Julie Wahl at 910-892-8071.