Last November, photographers Kathryn and Gary Meek were vacationing in China, when one misty morning, they spied a junk boat moored to just a little wisp of a dock on the Yangtze River. Even though it was at rest, Kathryn Meek said she was struck by the serenity of the scene. She pulled out her camera and started shooting. One of the images she captured would later become “Misty Morning,” winner of the Sunset Print Award – Illustrative category in the PPA Southwest District. “It is one of my favorite shots. The trip was a cool experience and I was able to get a really cool shot,” she says. To properly convey the ethereal feeling of the scene for the print, she used LexJet Sunset Photo Metallic Paper. “It really made the image pop,” she said of the award-winning paper. The Meek duo decided to quit their full-time jobs in 1977 and start learning about photography. Wondering if it was possible to start their careers over doing something they both loved, they bought a low-end 35mm...

Photographer Uldis Ilvess was on a road trip through South Carolina when he took his Sunset Print Award-winning photograph In Flight with Twigs. “We happened to drive by a small pasture with some private houses, and in between the houses was this fenced in area with a pond, and in the shrubs were these birds nesting there,” says Ilvess. The image of the bird with twigs in its mouth instantly captivated him.

Veteran Michigan photographer, Kari Douma, has paid many visits to the winner’s circle at print competitions. Ever since her first competition in 2007, she has been capturing numerous show-stopping photographs that catch the judge’s eyes.

One bride’s fairytale wedding portrait turned out to be a winner for Richmond, Virginia photographer, Mary Fisk-Taylor.

A few quiet days alone in Grand Teton National Park was highly worthwhile for Sunset Print Award winning photographer, Jaki Miller. Although she is no stranger to the beauty of Mormon Row, an early morning sunrise gave her an entirely new perspective.

Famous photographer Ansel Adams once said, “A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed.”

Photographer Tim Shaffer has been behind the lens at many a wedding. In fact, he shot his first nuptial event when he was 17, before embarking on a career as a newspaper photographer. Later, in 1991, he opened his professional studio, and hasn’t looked back. Today, he and his wife, Dana, run The Classic Image photography studio in Fort Plain, NY, where they specialize in weddings, senior portraits, family photos and more.

Photographer Ben Tanzer may have left a theater degree behind, but he certainly kept his flair for the dramatic. In his “Identity Series,” he transforms himself into iconic characters, for self-portraits like “The Boxer,” a grungy interpretation with 1920’s style that recently won the Sunset Print Award at the Plymouth Center for the Arts Fine Art of Photography. The conceptualized image is a clear shout out to Cindy Sherman-esque photo and editing work. “I’ve always been drawn to Cindy Sherman — she was one of my first crushes ever, as a photographer,” Tanzer says. “The Boxer was my first piece for the Identity Series … I just became really interested in what it means to be human … and how we define ourselves by what it is that we do.” For the competition print, Tanzer did some Photoshop work with overlays and brushes to create the gritty look, but says, “I don’t do a lot of what I call ‘liposuction editing.’ Just dodging and burning to emphasize certain areas.” It’s a technique...

LexJet’s headquarters in Sarasota, Fla., welcomed 2015 National Sunset Print Award Winner, Kari Douma, to our offices and home town as part of her first place prize for her image, “Aged Gracefully.”

Nine years ago, Kentucky photographer Jennifer Palumbo’s first print competition was the stuff that would make most people put down the camera forever. But not Palumbo. “It lit a fire under me,” she says. Her first competition photo was graded down from a 72 to a 68 for not meeting the competition’s “standards.” “I said: You just watch.” Four years later she earned her Masters of Photography degree from the Professional Photographers of America and began winning competitions. This year, she brought home the Sunset Print Award for her cheery image, “Dipsy Daisy,” pictured above. A former elementary school teacher, Palumbo took up photography after her son was born 16 years ago. “We decided that after we had children, I was going to stay home,” she says. “But in six months, I was bored, so I picked up a camera and started taking pictures.” The hobby turned into a flourishing business, and the family opened a portrait studio, Baby Boo Photography, in their 1,700 square-foot...