Photos featuring the built and natural environments and animals showcase our connection to the Clarence in this years InFocus photo competition. Over 120 entries were received in the competition which called for images to represent ‘Clarence Connections’. The 2021 judges were well-known local photographers Elise Hassey, John Witzig and Adam Hourigan. “The Clarence Valley provides a wonderful variety of subjects for our local photographers,” said Mr Witzig. “I was very impressed by the high calibre of beautiful imagery showcasing the Clarence Valley,” added Ms Hassey. The winners are featured in the 2021 Plunge Art & Culture Festival program which will be available to the public from 22 February, 2021. The coveted Plunge Arts & Culture prize of $500 has been awarded to photographer Minya Rose for her image ‘Exploring and Wandering our Backyard’; taken on the coast in the Yuraygir National Park. Minya’s photograph will be showcased on the cover of the 2021 Plunge Festival Program. In a tight competition, judges also awarded Minya winner in the mobile category for her image ‘Plunging into Cold Water’. Sally Job swooped up the prize for the compact category with her drone photograph of the new bridge at Harwood. Our connection to livestock and farming is celebrated in the last two categories; ‘Edwina and Friends at home on the Peach Farm’ by Elize Strydom wins the digital prize and Layla Bender has been awarded the youth prize for her picture ‘Grazing on the Banks of the Clarence’. The winning images will be displayed at the Grafton Regional Gallery and Ferry Park Gallery in Maclean during April. Past winners of the InFocus competition will also be featured in an exhibition during plunge at Grafton Shopping World ‘InFocus Looking Back’.