Smart receives high honor

A Whitehall resident was recently the recipient of a prestigious International award for photography.

Sarah Smart, who is a frequent photographic contributor to the Whitehall Ledger, was recently awarded second place in the National Garden Club International Photography Competition.

Smart received second place for her photograph "Grand Teton Fall." She also received an honorable mention for the photograph "Sunflowers in the Grand Tetons".

"I am very honored to have won this award, representing our local Whitehall Garden Club. No one else from Montana has won this award," Smart said.

The competition celebrated the centennial of the National Parks System, and the theme for the contest was based on Henry David Thoreau's quote, "In wildness is the preservation of the world."

According to the winter edition of Montana Gardens, the official publication of the Montana Federation of Garden Clubs Inc., the top 30 entries for the contest were displayed and judged in Portland, Maine during the National Garden Club Fall Board.

An article in Montana Gardens states Smart was an active member of the Accokeek, Maryland Garden Club for 15 years, and moved to Whitehall 15 years ago and joined the Whitehall Garden Club.

"She takes 'remarkable' photos, that is, photos worth remarking on. She likes photographing landscapes, birds and animals, and, to a lesser extent, people, though she is great about recording people at gatherings, be they at social gatherings, church or public events." Smart's husband Bill said in the Montana Garden's article. "Sarah is a giver and it shows in her photographic work. She is a bright light, a sweet, kind-hearted person, and that is what comes out in her photos: a kind love for places, animals and birds, and people. Her photos ALWAYS accentuate the positive. She even makes her Old Dog (that would be me) look pretty good, and that's doing something!"

The finalist's images from the contest are available to view at http://www.gardenclub.com.