KINSA PHOTO CONTEST OPENS JUNE 21

Eight great snapshots from Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois will have a chance to compete for international honors in the second local KINSA contest.

KINSA, Kodak International Newspaper Snapshot Awards, is the world's largest annual amateur-snapshot contest. The contest begins Father's Day, June 21, and runs for six consecutive weeks. The last date for entries is 5 p.m. Friday, July 31.

Newspapers from around the world are invited to sponsor local level contests. The Southeast Missourian's contest is open to current residents of Missouri counties of Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, Scott, New Madrid, Stoddard, Perry and Madison and Illinois counties of Alexander, Pulaski and Union.

Joyce Hunter is coordinating the contest for the Southeast Missourian. She explained that each week of the contest four semifinalists will be selected. The semi-finalists' names and winning photos will be published in the newspaper.

In all, 24 semi-finalists will be selected by a panel of community judges. From those, eight finalists will be forwarded to the international competition.

During the week prior to Labor Day, all the photographs entered in the local contest will be displayed at West Park Mall and a People's Choice Award will be given.

Last year's local competition brought 1,300 entries. Photographs showed families, birds, mountains, spider webs and a multitude of other subjects.

"It's really open to whatever makes a great photographer," said Hunter.

Participants too were varied. "We had all types of different people, retired people, working people, young people," Hunter said. "That's one great thing about photography. It touches almost everyone's lives."

Two Southeast Missourian finalists earned recognition in the 1997 international competition.

Dr. Robert Cox of Cape Girardeau and Mary Cobb of Scott City both received Special Merit Awards, and each received a $50 check from Kodak and a certificate.

Cobb's photograph of her two children floating in a bathtub of bubbles was also chosen "People's Choice" at the contest exhibit at West Park Mall. Cox's photograph depicts a flock of seagulls flying directly overhead.

"I think those awards added some interest for this year's contest," Hunter said.

She has received many inquiries about the contest. "People are anxious to participate," she said. "We are proud to offer a way for people to show off their photo skills."

The contest has rules.

Photos must be taken on Kodak film and use Kodak processing. Only prints will be accepted at the local contest level. No negatives, slides or transparencies will be judged.

Photos must have been taken after Jan. 1, 1996 and may not have been entered in any other photo contest at any time, including last year's KINSA contest.

Negatives are needed for a winning photo to advance to the international competition.

If a photo shows identifiable people, the photographer must include signed release forms from those people to forward to international judges.

Entry forms must be filed out and attached to the back of each photograph submitted. Forms will be published in the newspaper throughout the contest period. Photocopies of the form are acceptable. Entry forms will also be available at the Southeast Missourian, 301 Broadway.

There is no cost to enter and no limit on entries. No photos will be returned.

For information, contact Hunter at (573) 335-6611, ext. 150.