Millbrook resident wins photo contest

MILLBROOK — Lucas “Luke” Kelly said he is proud to have won the ninth annual fall foliage photo contest sponsored by Central Hudson Gas and Electric, along with a $750 check and a framed print of his photo.

“I’ve known about Central Hudson’s fall foliage photo contest for years. It was a goal of mine to win it someday,” said Kelly. “I entered once, three or four years ago, and didn’t make it into the finalists. I hadn’t entered the contest in the last few years because I was  traveling, so I decided to give it another shot this year.”

But he cut it close, he said.

‘The entry deadline was Nov. 5th, but by Nov. 3rd I still hadn’t taken any fall foliage photos.”

Driving to work on the Taconic State Parkway, Kelly said he saw two brilliant sunrises consecutively on the first and second days of November, and found his inspiration.

The day before the contest deadline, he woke up at 5 a.m. to take what turned out to be the winning photograph.

“I thought that if we had another morning like that, I might be able to  get a good photo to submit for the contest,” said the Millbrook resident. “I drove up to Ferncliff Forest in Rhinebeck, climbed up the fire tower and waited for the sun to rise. It was freezing cold, but as I expected, there was a spectacular sunrise. The Catskills were glowing pink, and the first light of the day hitting the trees made their colors even more vibrant. That turned out to be the winning photo.”

Kelly added that he grew up in nearby Red Hook.

“Growing up in the Hudson Valley really fostered my love for the outdoors and nature,” he said.

A love of travel has kept him moving over the years. He even worked as a commercial fisherman in Alaska some summers to earn money to continue to travel.

A 2012 graduate of Ithaca College, Kelly discovered he also loves photography, which he practices while traveling.

“Throughout my early 20s, I worked in Alaska on a commercial salmon fishing boat in the summertime to pay for the next trip,” he said. “It was hard and sometimes dangerous work, but I loved it, and it allowed me to travel to some really incredible places  like Patagonia, New Zealand, Nepal and Tanzania. I’ve been to six continents, 40-something countries and almost all of the states.”

After years of taking photos just to show people the places he’s visited, he realized that he had an aptitude for photography and decided to teach himself landscape photography.

He now has a business selling prints of his photos, and calendars.

“I share my work on Instagram, Facebook and Etsy under the name LukeKellyTravels,” he said, adding that before the pandemic he gave motivational speeches at area schools about his travels. “I’d really like to get back to doing that, but my business has been growing… my plan is to just keep working as hard as I can on photography, traveling when I can and seeing where it goes from here.”

Kelly and his fiancé, Victoria, recently moved to Millbrook.

“We really like the area so far,” he said. “We wanted to live in a small town that has a strong sense of community."

He said he “was happy” when he learned he won the contest.

“We’re lucky to live in such a scenic area,” said Kelly. “All of the finalists’ photos were awesome, and I want to congratulate them on their spectacular work. I also want to thank Central Hudson for putting this contest on every year. It’s a pretty cool thing to do.”

To view the finalists’ photos, go to www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=centralhudson.

Lucas “Luke” Kelly, shown here canoeing, won the photo contest sponsored by Central Hudson Gas & Electric. Photo submitted

Lucas “Luke” Kelly, shown here canoeing, won the photo contest sponsored by Central Hudson Gas & Electric. Photo submitted