In its basic simplicity, the four colors of our state flag come together to represent everything that makes Colorado…well…“Colorado.” When flying high, our flag invokes the feeling and experience of our endless blue skies; the 300-plus days of sunshine we enjoy; the white bands of snow along the Rockies; and the always impressive and inspiring red-toned sunsets. For the 2023 photo contest, Colorado Country Life tasked readers to capture the four colors of our iconic state flag in photos.
The 500 entries we received this year included all the following scenes and so much more. See for yourself in the following pages how the winning photos come together to make a great collage of Colorado and the colors of its flag.
Congratulations to this year’s winners, including Poudre Valley REA consumer-member J.R. Schnelzer, of Milliken, for the winning cover shot “American Barn.”
Find CCL on Facebook and Instagram to see the 2023 Photo Contest winners, runners up and other entries we received, as well as a special video collage of the winners and runners up. Be sure to keep current with CCL and watch for more information about next year’s contest, which will open late summer.
(Click here to jump to the video.)
2023 Cover Contest Winner
“American Barn”
J.R. Schnelzer, Milliken, Poudre Valley REA consumer-member
Category: Blue
“Sunrise Blues”
1st Place: Donnell Allen, Monument, Mountain View Electric Association consumer-member
“Blue Hour”
2nd Place: Jennifer Coombes, Berthoud, Poudre Valley REA consumer-member
“Curious Scrub Jay”
3rd Place: Leslie Larson, Lyons, Poudre Valley REA consumer-member
Category: Gold
“Sand Dunes and Moon”
1st Place: J.R. Schnelzer, Milliken, Poudre Valley REA consumer-member
“Happiness Is”
2nd Place: Natalie Heller, Ridgway, San Miguel Power Association consumer-member
“Sunset by the Fence”
3rd Place: Kerry Clegg, Kiowa, Mountain View Electric Association consumer-member
Category: Red
“Talking Turkey”
1st Place: Emilie Gunderson, Windsor, Poudre Valley REA consumer-member
“Flower on Grand Mesa”
2nd Place: Rod Martinez, Grand Junction, Grand Valley Power consumer-member
“Distant Sun”
3rd Place: Izic Arnold, Clifton, Grand Valley Power consumer-member
Category: White
“Frolicking Fox Kits”
1st Place: Connie Chamberlain, Kremmling, Mountain Parks Electric consumer-member
“Mountain Goat Kids”
2nd Place: David Dahms, Windsor, Poudre Valley REA consumer-member
“Frozen Wonderland”
3rd Place: Gary Geisick, Weldona, Morgan County REA consumer-member
Winners and Runners Up Video Collage
The 2024 Photo Contest will be announced late this summer. Want to learn more ways to win? Visit our Reader Engagement page where contests are updated every month.