Brad Palmer was enjoying a nice day at Merimbula beach with his wife, Christine, and son, Thomas, when he decided to take a photo of seven-year-old Thomas splashing around in the water.
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The next thing he knew, he was the winner of The Canberra Times summer photo competition - designed to capture the essence of the Australian summer - and $500 richer.
''I definitely didn't plan it [entering the competition]. It was quite a candid photo,'' Mr Palmer said. ''There was definitely no posing.''
Mr Palmer, a public servant from Curtin, said he didn't even have much interest in photography and wasn't going to submit the photo. But when Mrs Palmer heard about the competition, she persuaded him to enter.
In second place, Robyn Bromley, from Ainslie, said her photo of a friend's kelpie-whippet named Mili jumping into a lake was a bit more planned.
''I had already decided that it would be a dog leaping into the lake,'' Ms Bromley said.
Her photo, taken at Yarramundi Reach opposite Government House, took advantage of Mili's love of playing fetch. Ms Bromley threw a ball into the lake and Mili happily jumped in to retrieve it.
Third place-getter Ashleigh Croxford had been studying photography for six months. Her photo, taken at Bermagui, came about while she was eating lunch and some seagulls decided they wanted her chips.
''I put in on Facebook and a few people commented on it [so I decided to submit it],'' she said.
The Autumn photo competition is under way and will run until May 31. The best photo wins $500, second place is $350 and third place is $150. Send your photos, as attached JPEG files, to photocomp@canberratimes.com.au. Entries must include your name, address, phone number, photo title, a brief description, and the date the photo was taken. Photos must be a minimum of 150Kb and a maximum of 1MB. A maximum of three photos per person can be entered.
