State 4-H Youth Photo Display

Annual display of 150 photos taken by 4-H and other youth

If a photo is worth a thousand words, then Wisconsin youth are producing volumes through the 4-H photography project.

Over Wisconsin 11,500 4-H youth develop the art and science of photography each year. Photography helps young people observe and appreciate their surroundings. Looking through the camera makes them isolate a subject from the rest of the world, forcing them to really "see" the subject and the world in a new way.

The learning process begins in fall with 4-H enrollment, and culminates with photo exhibits at the summer county fair. In between are project meetings and photo field trips under the guidance of parents and over 550 adult and youth photo volunteer leaders across the state. Popular subjects are landscapes, vacations, pets, friends and family, and family celebrations.

About 150 of the best 4-H photos become part of the annual State 4-H Youth Photo Display. Each county can send in three photo entries for the display. Most entries are selected at the county fair in summer. An entry is a single color or black-and-white print made from a negative, slide, or digital image. Deadline for entries is November 15.

In the spring, the State 4-H Photo Specialist and the State 4-H Photo Advisory Committee, a group of 4-H photo volunteer leaders and county fair photography judges, select the top photos in the annual display. These top photos are then highlighted on the display. In August the entire display is exhibited for the first time at the Wisconsin State Fair Exposition Center for thousands of visitors to see. After State Fair, the display becomes a traveling exhibit that county Extension offices and volunteer leaders can borrow through the Cooperative Extension Media Collection for local photo training and other 4-H events. A copy of each top photo also is displayed in the Tommy G Thompson Youth Center at Wisconsin State Fair Park for a year.

2010 Photo Display Top Twelve

2009 Photo Display Top Twelve

2008 Photo Display Top Ten

2007 Photo Display Top Ten

2006 Photo Display Top Ten

2005 Photo Display Top Ten