Scenes from Summerlin

Alex Vaughn, the 17-year-old student body president at Palo Verde High School, took home the Best of Show award for her entry titled Free at this year's Scenes from Summerlin community photo competition.

The photo, which was taken in Summerlin on the playground at Linda Givens Elementary School in The Vistas Village, features Vaughn's friend, Makayla Rawlings, playing hopscotch in red shoes.

"Makayla loves to model and I love taking pictures so we get along great," said Vaughn, who has lived in Summerlin since 1992 - just two years after development commenced on the community.

Although Vaughn loves taking photos, this is the first year she's participated in the competition. "We're glad she did," said Tom Warden, vice president of community and government relations for The Howard Hughes Corp., developer of Summerlin. "Her photo depicts the fun, light-hearted days of youth - something we all cherish."

The third annual 2007 Scenes from Summerlin photo competition yielded more than 500 photo submissions and produced more than 60 winners within three age divisions: child, teen and adult. Entry categories included lifestyle, community, family/home, landscape and architecture.

General Growth Properties gift cards were awarded with first-place winners receiving $250, second-place winners receiving $125 and third-place winners receiving $75. Vaughn also received a $500 General Growth Properties gift card for her Best of Show placement.

This year's judges included Tom Craig of Opulence Studios and Eric Jamison of Studio J, who, together, are responsible for taking the vast majority of the photos in the community's colossal photo library that now includes more than 150,000 photos. New to the judges panel this year was Scott Robertson, creative director for Robertson Wood Advertising, the agency responsible for the development of Summerlin's advertising campaigns and marketing efforts.

The judges considered composition, lighting, spacing, technique and overall aesthetics and impression in determining winners. "It's always enlightening to look at photos that are similar to ones that we have taken previously," Craig said. "I really appreciate the fresh perspective and was very impressed with the overall quality of the photos. There are clearly a few teenagers and children who should consider a future career as a photographer."

According to Warden, the teen and child divisions fared very well in the competition and nearly half of all the entries were from teenagers. "The overall quality of the photos was superb, but we were especially impressed with the photos we received in the teen and child divisions," he said.

Many of the submissions came from students at Palo Verde High School where Summerlin's professional photographers gave a presentation in April. In fact, two teens and one child have swept the Best of Show category since the competition's inception. "It is both impressive and interesting to see the community from the camera lenses of our youth," Warden said. "They are especially creative at how they look at ordinary, everyday things. We appreciate both their perspective and talent."

Warden said that inspiration for the original competition came from Summerlin's own photo library, which includes photographs taken since the early 1990s. "Not only do we have pictures that detail the developmental progress of the community, we've got photos of just about every milestone occasion -- from groundbreakings and grand openings to special community events and new neighborhood openings. Summerlin has provided thousands of great photo opportunities over the years."

Winners were announced at an awards ceremony held Sept. 18 at the Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center. A display, which features all 63 winning photos framed courtesy of The Great Frame Up in Summerlin, is on exhibit in the library gallery through Nov. 8. A second display will also exhibit all winning photos at the Summerlin Art Festival, Sept. 29 and 30 at Summerlin Centre Community Park.

According to Warden, all of the entries may also be considered for use in other Summerlin promotional and public relations efforts. Many photos from previous competitions have been published in conjunction with media stories in both newspapers and magazines throughout the valley. Plans for this year's winning photos are similar.

"Based on very strong resident response for three consecutive years, the photo competition has earned its place as an annual community event," Warden said. "The entries to Scenes from Summerlin are a visual testament of residents' appreciation for the beauty of their community."

Developed by The Howard Hughes Corp., an affiliate of General Growth Properties, Inc., Summerlin began to take shape in 1990.

It is a 22,500-acre master planned community located along the western rim of the Las Vegas Valley.

The community is currently home to more than 95,000 residents. With about 7,500 acres still to develop, including its urban core, Summerlin Centre, Summerlin is continuing to unfold.

The master-planned community is home to more than 100 neighborhood and village parks, more than 150 completed miles of the Summerlin trail system, nine golf courses, a dozen houses of worship, shopping centers, medical and cultural facilities, business parks and more than 100 actively selling floor plans.

Homes are available in a variety of styles -- from single-family homes to townhomes, condominiums and lofts -- priced from the low $200,000s to more than $2 million.

Custom home sites in The Ridges are priced from the $500,000s.

Luxury apartment homes offer monthly rents starting from the high $800s.

For more information on Summerlin, visit summerlin.com or call 888-898-5015.