SC twins capture perfect opportunity – and a prize

Twins, a sunrise and a $1,200 photo

On an early morning walk at Hunting Island State Park this spring, veteran camper and amateur photographer Eric Rodgers snapped a photo of his 5-year-old twins, Lille and Liège, strolling hand-in-hand among the fallen trees on Boneyard Beach.

It was one of about 2,500 photos Rogers took over his family’s week-long vacation, but the children’s silhouette against the pale yellow rising sun, framed by the trees and passing clouds made it a perfect shot, he said. “I knew was something special as soon as I took it.”

Online voters thought it was special, too, and selected it as the grand prize winner of the South Carolina State Park Service’s Making Memories Photo Contest. The contest has been going on for a year, and three winners were selected in the summer, fall, winter and spring in the categories of Landscape, People and Wildlife. The 12 finalists competed for the grand prize in an online vote on Facebook in June.

“I’m really flattered,” said Rodgers, of Liberty, who has been interested in photography for 12 years but had never before entered a contest. Rodgers will receive a grand prize package worth $1,200 that includes a Tilley Hat or ENO Hammock from Mast General Store in Columbia or Greenville, plus a $1,000 state park gift card valid toward any campsite or cabin reservation in the system.

He and his family, which includes his wife, the twins and a son named Oliver, go on camping trips regularly. They almost always hunker down in tents, so Rodgers said he plans to use the prize money toward future camping trips in nicer rental cabins. “This will be a nice upgrade,” he said.

Weighing Warhol’s impact

Head to the Columbia Museum of Art at noon on July 31 for a lecture about Pop art with Brad Collins, an art history professor at USC. Collins will discuss Andy Warhol and his cultural impact in conjunction with ‪the “From Marilyn to Mao: Andy Warhol’s Famous Faces” exhibit at the museum‬. While Warhol revolutionized the art world in the ‘60s with his art, he continued to shape the cultural landscape into the ’70s and ’80s. After the lecture, Collins will sign copies of his book, “Pop Art.” The book can also be purchased in the museum gift shop.

Project Opera campers perform

Project Opera Camp is a two-week-long summer program for high school students in Columbia. The 20 campers partake in daily voice, improv and acting lessons; music and staging rehearsals; and team-building activities while also preparing for a final public performance. The final opera performance will be at 7 p.m. July 31 at the Columbia Music Festival Association, 914 Pulaski St.

This story was originally published July 26, 2015 at 8:17 AM.