Meet our 2013 Judges

Bobbie Teal Atlas

Bobbie Atlas, is an arts educator and photographer with 25 years experience in teaching, conducting workshops, lectures, curating, documentaries and as a juror. Ms. Atlas specializes in documentary photography that "captures artifacts of living". She writes curriculum for high school and college photography programs, has participated in many conferences delivering "the best-of teaching practices" to arts professionals in the United States and Canada; she has traveled to Greece and Italy to independently publish a book titled, Touching the Walls of Ruins.

Ms. Atlas been an advisor for Davis Publication's art history text books, has produced a short documentary of local Holocaust survivor Murray Ebner and continues to teach and document "artifacts of living". Ms Atlas' passion is in documentary art and in the joy of teaching photography as a tool for discovery and living passionately.

Jim Crotty

It's all about the light. Jim is a photographer Jim Crotty and visual artist with a passion for the subjects and places., mostly being the scenic landscapes and natural details of the South Carolina Low Country and in the Hocking Hills of Southeastern Ohio. He has been involved with photography since starting with a Pentax Spotmatic F 35mm SLR camera and homemade black and white darkroom in the basement of his childhood home, all the way back in the late 70's.

For the most part he is a self-taught artist but stay active in ongoing educational programs. Perhaps one of the most valuable learning experiences came from his participation in 2000 in the Professional Nature Photography course taught by David Middleton at the Rocky Mountain School of Photography in Missoula, Montana.

JIm's work has been published in Smithsonian Magazine, Ohio Magazine, Ohio State Parks, USAToday, Professional Photographer, Housetrends, National Wildlife and Nature's Best.

His is the owner and manage Photography by Jim Crotty LLC from a home office and studio in Frisco, Texas where he also works as a commercial photographer providing portrait photography as well as assignment editorial, product and architectural photography.

Jim frequently returns to Ohio to present and teach nature photography workshops, most often at The Inn at Cedar Falls in Hocking Hills. He is a proud, single dad of two beautiful daughters who keep him laughing, smiling and constantly moving forward in living and loving the best way he can, by staying true to himelf, his art and the pure joy that comes through the creative process and connecting with the good light.

Chip Gross

Freelance writer, photographer, speaker, and editor Chip Gross has been fascinated by the out-of-doors all his life. At an early age, Gross was taught to fish by his grandfather and as a young teenager learned to hunt from his father. Those two activities eventually led him to many other outdoor pursuits, such as birding, canoeing, and camping, just to name a few.

Following high school, Gross attended Ohio State University, earning a four-year Bachelor of Science degree (1974), majoring in Wildlife Management. After graduation he taught outdoor education for two years at the Mohican Outdoor School near Loudonville, Ohio, working summers as a Lake Ranger for the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District, also in Ohio.

In 1976, Gross was hired by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife, as a State Wildlife Officer. He completed a 27-year career with the agency, advancing to Wildlife Education Officer and ultimately Editor of its two wildlife magazines: Wild Ohio and Wild Ohio for Kids. Under Gross’ leadership, the magazines won the prestigious James P. Barry Award for Editorial Excellence in 2001.

It was during his years with the Ohio DNR that Gross began freelance writing and shooting photographs of outdoor subjects, selling his first story in 1981. Since that time, he has gone on to sell hundreds of articles and photos to national, regional, and state outdoor publications, as well as Web sites. He has also written four books: Home, At Last, Is The Hunter, a fiction novel, Pro Tactics: Steelhead & Salmon, Ohio Wildlife Viewing Guide, and Young Beginner’s Guide to Shooting & Archery nonfiction.

Gross took advantage of an early retirement offer from the Ohio DNR in 2002, and is now self-employed fulltime as a freelance writer, photographer, speaker, and editor. He has been a member of the Outdoor Writers of Ohio (OWO) since 1983, serving as president of that organization in 1991-1992. Gross has also been a member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America (OWAA) since 1986, serving on the Board of Directors from 2004 to 2007. He has won numerous writing and photography awards from both OWAA and OWO.
www.chipgross.com

Rick Prebeg

Production Manager, Jungle Jack Productions, and Rick Prebeg President of World Class Images

Rick Prebeg has worked with Jack Hanna for more than 30 years, handling all of his photography and many other aspects of Jungle Jack’s adventures while traveling the world at the same time. Rick has been involved with wildlife for most of his life...

▪ Beginning as a youngster, caring for every type of animal he could get his hands on—
▪ Continuing as he worked with the Columbus Zoo for 14 years—
▪ And for the past 14 years, Rick has coordinated the production of the successful TV series Jack

Hanna’s Animal Adventures and he continues with the Emmy-award winning series Jack Hanna’s Into the Wild.

Rick’s collection of images reflects his journeys to more than 30 countries throughout the world, capturing rare glimpses of exotic creatures and cultures! His photo credits are numerous, including several books (Jack Hanna’s Safari Adventure and Passport Into the Wild) and a feature in China’s National Geographic on the highly endangered Przewalski’s Gazelle, which Rick documented for the first time on film!
www.jackhanna.com/photos

Gary Walker

Gary Walker Garyis a successful professional commercial photographer and a sought after photography teacher working in the Central Ohio area for over 25 years. His client list includes Abbott Foods, Turner Construction, and Franklin Park Conservatory.

Gary founded the Walker Photography School in 2001 and teaches basic through advanced digital imaging courses, digital workflow, image manipulation, and special project classes including portrait lighting, landscape, and product/still life photography. Walker Photography School classes are held at the Cord Camera Centers classroom in Columbus.
www.walkerphotoschool.com

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