A COMPUTER science teacher who moved to Malvern from Birmingham ‘because of the hills’ has won a Worcestershire photography competition for his breath-taking picture showing the true beauty of our picturesque county.
Andy Cawthray won the #MyWorcestershire contest which organised by Visit Worcestershire to celebrate all thing unique about the area – from the great outdoors to its enviable heritage.
Andy, who works in a local school, has been awarded a Worcestershire Hamper and tickets for the West Midlands Safari Park.
He said: “There is something so special about the Malvern Hills, an iconic landscape that captures the imagination and inspires so many people.
“I feel very lucky to live here and have the hills on my doorstep.”
Andy, who has lived in Malvern for 15 years now, added: “I have always been interested in photography ever since I got my first SLR camera when I was a teenager, back in the day of actual film reels in the camera/
“This photo was taken when my family and I went for a ‘lockdown’ daily exercise walk up to the Worcestershire Beacon.
“We could see and hear this immense storm in the distance over Gloucestershire and as we walked up the hills it gradually got closer.
“When we got to the Worcestershire Beacon I took this photo, there was literally a ‘calm before the storm’, it was still and quiet where we were but with a distant rumbling in the background.
“Once I had taken some photos my family and I walked back down to the Beacon Road car park, just as we got there the clouds burst, the storm had arrived in the Malvern Hills.
“An unforgettable experience, and so glad we were on the hills to experience it and capture it on camera.”
He added he saw the Visit Worcestershire photography competition that evening and thought others would like to see the Malvern Hills in a different light to the usual photos of hills.
“I never thought I would win the competition though.
“Hopefully the photo will inspire people to visit the hills, it is a truly magical place.”
As part of the contest residents and visitors were encouraged to enter a photo into each theme, celebrating all the unique about Worcestershire.
Each week a finalist was announced, with the winner announced on Monday on the Visit Worcestershire Facebook page.
Iconic landscapes and attractions were amongst the finalists’ images.
Visit Worcestershire manager, Lorna Robinson, said, “This photo competition started as a way of celebrating our stunning county while we were in lockdown, reminding people that we really do live in the most phenomenal part of the world.
“We have so many talented amateur and professional photographers out there who really have captured the county as it’s best – it’s been really hard to judge each week.
“Thank you to everyone who entered and a huge congratulations to Andy for his winning entry.”
The #MyWorcestershire photography competition has been running for 5 weeks, each with a different theme.
Follow @VisitWorcs on Instagram to see all the entries.
