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Jonathan Walker photo showing off some of Kern's diverse landscape ended up on the cover of "Capture Kern County." "Capture Kern County" the book was officially released Thursday night and it's as good a portrait of our region that's ever been published.
Why?
Because it was shaped through 21,993 submissions from 1,084 amateur and professional photographers sharing their images on CaptureKernCounty.com. The best of those images made the final cut for the book, filling 128 pages with often breath-taking photos on a wide variety of subjects. It's a document as diverse as the county in which we live.
The project, sponsored by The Bakersfield Californian and Tejon Ranch, launched in May and gave amateur and professional photographers a chance to share their visions of Kern in more than 30 categories. Site visitors shared 458,408 votes and 14,103 comments, and editors used those reader votes to help narrow down the 200 or so images that made the final cut for the full-cover hardcover book.
Californian photographers are well represented, but we know they're good. What shocked me was the depth, diversity and quality of the submissions. Magic happens when 3,000-plus people document "their" Kern County and remind us what a special place we live in.
We've given our community many avenues to share in our products over the years, but I believe this our best effort yet.
Congrats to Navdeep Singh , who won a $499 grand prize for his mesmerizing "Sunrise at Grapevine," and to Jonathan Walker, who won a second $499 prize for taking the gorgeous wildflower photo that ended up on the cover. Two photos that portray Kern at its finest. Henley's hosted an invite-only book release party Thursday night, where the book's contributors got their first glimpse of their work in print.
Copies of the book are for sale at Russo's Books, Henley's Photo, the San Joaquin Hospital gift shop and The Bakersfield Californian. But if brisk presales are an indication, you may want to grab your own copy fast.
Although the book release closes one chapter, Capture Kern County continues to thrive online. The website remains active, with new photos added daily, and new features and contests appearing frequently. Check it out, share your own votes and comments -- and post your own images. Who knows what might happen next.