Izaak Walton Preserve Announces Calendar Contest Winners

HOMEWOOD, IL — The 14 winners of the third annual “Seasons of Izaak Walton” photo calendar competition have been announced. The competition attracted 140 entries, and 14 photos in total will be used.

According to a news release, the Homewood Izaak Walton Preserve's third annual 12-month calendar will start with Jan. 1, 2022. It features a photo for each month, plus a front and back cover. This year, one new development was an increased number of winning entries by out-of-state photographers who visited the preserve. Three of the 14 winners were from other states: California, Colorado and Ohio.

Since the contest started in 2019, there have been 550 entries, the release states. The number this year declined from the 200 in 2020, likely because of a public works project in the Preserve as well as the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We are so pleased to offer once again, for the third year, our 2022 ‘Season's of Izaak Walton’ photo calendar," said John Brinkman, President of the Izaak Walton Board. "A huge thank you to the Calendar Committee for their work and commitment for this effort. The winning photos again uniquely depict the beauty of Our Hidden Gem!"

An independent panel of five judges selected the following winners:

Front Cover- "Morning Reflections” by Topher Campbell, of Ladera Ranch, CA

Back cover-“Best Friends” by Douglas Cole, of Homewood, IL

January- "In the Arms Of Sleep” by Ryan Patrick, of Homewood, IL

February- "Evening Calm” by Joe Przybylski, of Homewood, IL

March- "Twilight Bliss” by Tina Ray, of Homewood, IL

April- "Goosebumps” by Heather Marcum, of Thornton, IL

May- "Yellow Swallowtail Rising” by Paul Reis, of Oak Lawn, IL

June- "Frog Day Afternoon” by Howard Wolinsky, of Flossmoor, IL

July- "Summer Prairie Scene” by Jim Shover, of Homewood, IL

August- "Summer Breeze” by Kirk Snyder, of Denver, CO

September- "Monarch Landscape” by Kathie Hazlett, of Galion, OH

October- "Pumpkin” by Penny Shnay, of Park Forest, IL

November- "Settling Fog” by Laura Halfman, of Flossmoor, IL

December- "Bob Elf” by Martin Tully, of Homewood, IL

See a video that displays all the entries by Kathie Hazlett, a calendar committee member, here.

February winner Joe Przybylski, of Homewood, is a creative director at the University of Chicago. His stark sunrise photo scored him a win.

Related: Blind Man, 70, Enters His First Photo Contest In Homewood

"Izaak Walton is a photographer's dream spot,"Przybylski said. "You have amazing sunsets, diverse wildlife, and amazing trails to explore. It’s hard to take a bad picture at Izaak Walton."

Paul Reis, a health industry executive from Oak Lawn, whose seemingly levitating swallowtail scored the May slot.

“Izaak Walton is a beautiful, serene setting that I only recently discovered was an excellent photography environment," Reis said. "For years I attended youth baseball and softball games there, but since I brought my camera for the first time in 2021. I know I’ll return often.”

Californian Topher Campbell, whose Van Gogh-like landscape nabbed the cover slot this year.

“On our frequent road trips from California to Homewood to visit our daughter, son-in-law, and three grandsons, our two labradoodles and I enjoy our daily hike through Izaak Walton Preserve,” Campbell said.

The winners were selected based on an objective mathematical analysis of the favorites selected by five independent judges with no ties to Izaak Walton Preserve, the release states.

Each judge submitted a ranking of 20 of their favorite shots to the HIWP volunteer Calendar Committee. The committee made all final decisions depending on the judge’s rankings, breaking ties with the public’s “likes'' on Izaak Walton’s site on Facebook.

The judges are all accomplished photographers. This is who they are and what they had to say about the competition:

• Rich Chapman is an event, and portrait photographer, utilizing skills learned as a newspaper photojournalist. He runs a studio with his son Richard in Algonquin: www.richchapmancreative.com

“Many of the photos made me feel like I was looking at Currier & Ives paintings, the mood of the scenics, and the wildlife photos were spot on in capturing the personality of our animal kingdom.”

• Richard “Camera 2” Chapman is an event and portrait photographer with his father Rich: www.RichChapmanPhotographers.c...

“I am happy to see people continuing to take pictures through these troubling times. Art can be a great uniter, and it always helps to be reminded of the beauty all around us. Many of the photographs entered this year displayed an eagerness to notice, capture and share that beauty.”

• Marty Hackl, a Chicago area nature photographer and a member of the Rockford Symphony: http://martyhackl.net/

“My favorite photos are those that tell me a story, or draw me into the frame...make me want to be in that place.”

• Henry Matthiessen III is a self-described “artist, photographer, life mentor, thrill seeker” working in the Tri-State area. His Stoned Art Studio & Gallery is in Dubuque, Iowa: http://www.stonedartstudio.com...

“Many excellent submissions, making selections was very challenging.”

• Mat Zook, a nature photographer from Plainfield, is the founder of the 8,000-member Illinois Photography Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/group...

“I enjoy it when a photo captures a memory or story. The photos that capture animals or people I like when my mind can feel what a person was experiencing. For landscape photos the feeling of being pulled into the photo. Being able to let your eyes walk through the moment.”

The Calendar Committee thanks all entrants and the judges, adding that now is the time to start taking photos for the 2023 calendar, the release states. The committee is made up of Kathie Hazlett, Heather Marcum, Tina Ray, James Shover, Penny Shnay, and Howard Wolinsky. Frances Fullam and Wolinsky, both of Flossmoor, proposed the photo calendar in 2019.

Details on the sale of the calendars will be announced soon, the release states.