A guest blogger lends me hand today

I am so thankful for friends.

A little while ago, my friend Dave Kassnoff offered to write a blog for me as I took a few days off for my elbow surgery. Here it is today for your enjoyment.

Picturing Webster today (reviving the photo contest)

by David Kassnoff

 Sunset from Lodge at Webster Park, D. Kassnoff

While Missy recovers, I thought it’s a good time to revisit a long-lost practice of celebrating the local beauty of our community.

But, when I go looking for a current, local photo competition, I come up a bit short.

The Webster Arboretum ran a photo contest for a few years, but the most recent entries I found appeared from June, 2017. Missy Rosenberry’s “Picture Webster” photo contest ran in the Democrat & Chronicle, predating this blog space, in 2010. The Webster Library has featured local photographers, both professional and hobbyist – but the library’s current limitations on hours and access makes a photo event unlikely in 2020.

So far, no photo contests on my radar. Or, it seems, anyone else’s.

This is slightly ironic, as Webster this year has played host to a number of photo enthusiasts. We’re a photogenic town, even without our usual parades and festivals. Digital photographer and newsman John Kucko regularly shoots and streams lakeside scenes from Webster Park, in summer and winter. Oklahoma Beach and its Sandbar Park were among the best places to photograph last month’s Neowise comet in the night skies. And, I’ll admit to capturing a few vistas along our Lake Ontario coastline this summer. Just for the satisfaction of it.

I’d hate to see Facebook and Instagram hog all the great pictures – and not recognize the imaginative picture-takers in our town. Our diligent efforts at social distancing have given rise to chalk-drawn driveways and other creative outlets. I’d like to see someone take the lead on a community photo contest, with entries posted on a website where viewers can comment. Webster is home to several HTML-coding experts, so this shouldn’t be so difficult.

Who’s willing to step up?

Mini-bio: A Webster resident, David Kassnoff teaches strategic communications courses at St. Bonaventure University.

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