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Over the edge
Mic Smith’s perfectly timed photo of rafters plunging over Bull Sluice falls on the Chattooga River earned the Best of Show award and first place for Photo Feature in the 2016 Cooperative Communicators Association Communications Contest. Smith also won his third consecutive Photographer of the Year award.
Photo by Mic Smith
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Cover of the Year
Using a photo shot by Mike Eaddy, a volunteer with South Lynches Fire Department, art director Sharri Harris Wolfgang won the Cover of the Year award for the Nov./Dec. 2015 issue.
Photo by Mike Eaddy
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In the line of fire
Our Nov./Dec. 2015 feature on S.C. volunteer firefighters earned first place for Mic Smith in the Best Photo Essay or Story category and second place for assistant editor Diane Veto Parham in the Informative/Investigative feature competition.
Photo by Mic Smith
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Suiting up for fire training
How far will assistant editor Diane Veto Parham go in pursuit of a story? For the article “In the line of fire,” she suited up in firefighter gear and participated in a live-burn training drill with South Lynches Fire Department. The article earned second place in the CCA contest for Best Investigative/Informative feature.
Photo by Mic Smith
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Reliving the American Revolution
Mic Smith’s powerful images of South Carolina’s Revolutionary War reenactments earned third place in the Best Photo Essay or Story category.
Photo by Mic Smith
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Mad about mushrooms
Contributing writer Erin Weeks earned an honorable mention award from the judges for her profile of radical mycologist Tradd Cotter.
Photo by Mic Smith
A national competition for cooperative communicators of all stripes earned 10 awards for the staff and contributors of South Carolina Living, including a third consecutive Photographer of the Year award for Mic Smith. The Cooperative Communicators Association (CCA) Communications Contest drew more than 600 entries from cooperative organizations across the country.
The magazine also claimed the Cover of the Year, courtesy of Sharri Harris Wolfgang of Auras Design. Using a photo shot by Mike Eaddy of South Lynches Fire Department, the 2015 Nov./Dec. issue described the dangerous work encountered by volunteer firefighters and the critical services they provide in small communities across the state.
That cover story also won a writing award for the magazine’s assistant editor, Diane Veto Parham. "In the line of fire" won second place in the Informative/Investigative Feature category.
In addition to his award for Photographer of the Year, Smith swept all three spots in the category of Best Photo Essay or Story and earned the Best of Show award for the opening photo from “Rapid descent,” our April 2015 feature on white-water rafting.
"You can't stage a shot like that," one of the judges said about the photograph. "He had to be waiting and shot at the exact right moment."
"Every possible emotion is shown in this one shot," wrote another judge. "Fear, laughter and struggle are all captured."
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2016 CCA Contest Awards
PHOTOGRAPHY
Photo Feature
First place: Mic Smith, “White-water rafting”
Photo Essay or Story
First place: Mic Smith, “In the line of fire”
Second place: Mic Smith, “Rapid descent”
Third place: Mic Smith, “American Revolution”
Cover of the Year
First place: Sharri Harris Wolfgang and Mike Eaddy, “Local heroes”
Best Use of Photos in a Publication
Second place: Sharri Harris Wolfgang, South Carolina Living, Auras Design
Photographer of the Year
Mic Smith
Best of Show
Mic Smith, “White-water rafting”
WRITING
Informative/Investigative Feature
Second place: Diane Veto Parham, “In the line of fire”
Entertaining Feature
Honorable mention: Erin Weeks, “Mad about mushrooms”
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Related stories
Rapid descent – Grab your paddle and get ready to get wet as we take you on a tour of three wet-and-wild river adventures within easy driving distance of South Carolina.
In the line of fire – When the alarm sounds, South Carolina’s volunteer firefighters are ready to respond.
Concern for community – Meet some of the co-op employees and members who serve as emergency first responders across South Carolina.
Suiting up for fire training – Diane Veto Parham goes inside a live-burn training drill with the volunteers of South Lynches Fire Department.
Mad about mushrooms – Learn how South Carolina researchers plan to cure diseases, eradicate pests and clean up toxic chemicals with the power of mushrooms.
Reliving the American Revolution – Don't miss our travel guide to South Carolina's top Revolutionary War battle reenactments and living history weekends.
History as a hobby – Learn more about Revolutionary War reenacting from the living historians who make these events come to life.