No cheesy grins as Trust reveals winners of ‘Say Trees!’ photography contest
A beautiful photograph of a scene at Ullswater in the Lake District has won the Woodland Trusts Say Trees! photo competition, chosen from more than 1,500 entries submitted from outdoor locations across the UK.
The Trust felt the photo, which was taken by Ann-Marie Marshall from Hurstpierpoint in West Sussex and features her ten-year-old daughter Ella, captured the essence of the competition as the charity and partner Yorkshire Tea encouraged budding photographers to get outdoors and capture their magic family moments on camera.
Beccy Speight, Woodland Trust Chief Executive, said: “The best way for people to really value trees and woods is to experience them first hand. Over 1,500 people have taken the time to share a special moment outdoors and I hope they will continue to visit our beautiful native woodland, which we do so much to preserve.”
Ann-Marie has won a weekend away for four at the beautiful Rudding Park Hotel in Harrogate.
Of her photo Ann-Marie Marshall said: “There is a perfect place half way round Ullswater for a stop and there is a tree whose branches extend horizontally out just over the lake. My children love to have their snack stop on the tree. It was a beautiful autumn day and the light was stunning so perfect conditions for a photo!
“I am delighted to win this competition, I love taking photos and often have my camera with me to capture moments like this. Sometimes the light and opportunity for a photo are perfect and this was one of those moments.”
Tom Blair, brand manager at Yorkshire Tea, which is funding the planting of trees through the Woodland Trust, added: “The winning photograph really captures the beauty and importance of trees, something that Yorkshire Tea is extremely passionate about. This year, we’ve teamed up with the Woodland Trust to plant hundreds of thousands of trees through our Yorkshire Tree campaign. We’ll be planting in the UK and Kenya, one of the places from which we source our tea, to continue our long-standing dedication to trees.”
The Trust also chose three runners up: Barry Stockton’s photo taken in the Delamere Forest in Cheshire, Lucy Dennison’s photo taken in the New Forest – and we loved the expression of six-month-old Harrison Davis among the bluebells at Hagbourne Copse in Swindon, taken by Damien Davis. Each of the runners up receives vouchers for Betty’s Tea Rooms in Harrogate.
The Trust, the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity, wants to get more families out visiting our woods. It has just launched a raft of new activities aimed at encouraging children to visit woods and have fun in nature. Check out www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/naturedetectives
