Local photographer wins pick of the print
It seems as though we have more medal winners among us. This time though, they’re of the lens cap variety.
Photographer Leanna Rathkelly has just won the Professional Photographers of B.C.’s annual print competition award. Not a bad effort considering she was competing against 173 other entrants.
Rathkelly started working as a photographer in the early 1980s. She studied photography at both Alberta College of Art and mentored with professional photographers. A love of the mountains inspired her to move to Whistler in 1985 where she worked with the Whistler Question newspaper for four years. Leanna then formed Travelling Light Photography, shooting lifestyle and landscapes for advertising and editorial use.
She is the founding chair of the Whistler Photographic Society, a director with the Whistler Arts Council and is a member of both the Professional Photographers of Canada (PPABC division) and the Canadian Association of Photographers and Illustrators in Communications (CAPIC). Her work can regularly be seen in Whistler Resort posters and brochures. How she finds the time to take some trophy-grabbing photos is beyond us.
The award is named in memory of Dorse McTaggart, a pictorial photographer who photographed British Columbia scenes for reproduction on post cards in the 1970s, much of it using a 4x5 large format camera. He had a thriving home-based business in Burnaby and produced post cards on his own printing press. Dorse McTaggart was a very well-liked member of the PPBC and very respected for his photography. He was also an accomplished classical pianist. His collection of negatives remains in a permanent legacy in Victoria.
