The World Photographic Cup will be held April 24-29 in Dallas, Texas, and a Western North Carolina photographer will be there to compete as a member of Team USA.
Jill Blanchar lives in Hendersonville and recently qualified to become a member of the country's World Photographic Cup team.
"You really don't stay focused. I mean, you're in the moment itself and you don't even realize that time is going by; you're just looking through your lens just waiting for something magical to happen," she said.
Blanchar has been honing her craft for over a decade to be where she is today.
"I really started taking it more seriously about 2013. I was going on a fantastic trip to Iceland, and I decided, 'I really want good photos,' so I decided to take some classes and really understand my camera better," Blanchar said.
Ian McKay is an owner of Strong Hand Fitness and a friend of Blanchar's, who took a photo of one of his gym trainers.
"The one that stands out the most -- my favorite picture -- is my head personal trainer, James. He's a Type 1 diabetic, powerlifter, coach and personal trainer, and he's got chains around his neck so there's a little bit of rugged," McKay explained of the photo. "He's got this yellow going on and yellow beanie, and the way she did the lighting, it just really popped."
McKay said this is an amazing moment for Blanchar.
"You know, just combined feelings of just excitement and a little bit of adoration for seeing her hard work come to fruition," he said.
The photo that made this possible is one of 90-year-old biker Fred Schmid. This was one of a series of photos Blanchar took of Schmid during his many races.
Blanchar said she is very proud of the photo she took of Schmid.
"When I see it, it's just inspiration," Blanchar said. "Inspiration by what he's doing and inspiration for me as a photographer."
"Every member of every country's team gets a certificate of their photo that is their highlight photo as well as the emblem of the World Photographic Cup and then, of course, our country," she said.
Blanchar is also a competitive swimmer and just signed up for a 12.5-mile race coming up this year.
I'm so very inspired by Fred. If he can do these things at 90, I should be able to do them at my age," she said.
Mckay also added the friendship they share allows him to help the members of his gym.
"She's helped me to push me to focus on my goals of looking inward and focusing on my members and being able to put them out there in whatever capacity they're working in," McKay siad.
Blanchar says photography requires time and effort to make a quality snapshot.
"It's definitely a marathon," she said. "You feel lucky if you feel really good about two images a year you created, and you just have to have patience and continue to grow. It's a never-ending practice."
All Blanchar's preparation for the cup is finished; now, she looks towards April for the big competition.
STORY & PHOTO COURTESY OF ABC 13 WLOSHendersonville woman to compete as member of Team USA for World Photographic Cup (wlos.com)
