Photos

Photos with Santa will be available at Valley Mall today from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Saturday (Christmas Eve) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 301-582-0700. Hickory Elementary to hold spirit day Students at Hickory Elementary School are encouraged to wear red and green attire today for spirit day. Polar Bear Plunge set for Jan. 1   The annual Polar Bear Plunge is planned Sunday, Jan. 1, at River Bottom Park in Williamsport.

People are sharing photos of the quiet streets of Boston on Twitter today.

My husband recently reminded me that we should start gathering photos to display at our son's high school graduation celebration. Even though part of me wanted to delay this task in hopes that it would postpone the event, I knew my husband was right. It was time to look for photos. My hat is tipped to scrap-booking enthusiasts. I never seem to be together enough to crop and cut and paste or whatever it is they do at those all-night gatherings. Most of my children's photos from the early days are still in boxes.

Entries are being a ccepted for the sixth annual Hancock Area Photo Contest and Exhibit. The contest is open to photographers of any age or experience. Subject mater should appropriately represent the town of Hancock and nearby areas of Maryland, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Photos taken since January 2006 are eligible. Include name of photographer, address, phone, email, photo title, date and location of photo, format (digital or film) and camera make or model.

I distinctly remember trying to decide between a brown wrap and a rust wrap. The photographer was so nice. She allowed me to wear both. Not at the same time, of course. After all, this was a senior photo that would be published in the high school yearbook. The memories from that day came flooding back as I browsed through catalogs of poses and backgrounds for my son's senior portraits. We were in the waiting area of a local photographer's studio, surrounded by photos of teenagers ready to face the world.

If a congressman hadn’t already confessed to posing for stud-muffin photos and using them to troll for chicks on CraigsList, I wouldn’t have given this Anthony Weiner story a second thought. But now, when I see that a congressman stands accused of sending photos of his loincloth-draped hm-hm to a young, female Twitter follower — well, for politicians, there is no longer a presumption of innocence where matters of gross behavior are concerned. As of this moment, if you are a public office holder, I think we all automatically assume that you are, as we speak, downloading topless drawings of Peppermint Patti.

Chance encounters and glances often result in great photos. Such as the time Greencastle, Pa., resident Ed Dyson spotted a juvenile great horned owl while trout fishing or the moment when Erin Spahr, of New Market, Md., caught her 11-month-old son peeking out the doggie door. These are some of the moments on today's Gallery page, but we're looking for more of the best recent photos from the Tri-State area. So many amazing things - big and small - happen in the area that we don't get to see. This is a chance for amateur photographers to share their talent.

On June 1, an ongoing exhibit of photographs by Stefanie Boss opened at Contemporary School of the Arts and Gallery Inc. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. The gallery is at 4 W. Franklin St. in Hagerstown. For more information, call 301-791-6191, send an email to RonLytle3@netzero.net , or go to csagi.org .

Several students at Hagerstown Community College will exhibit work in an upcoming juried photography exhibition sponsored by HCC's Robinwood Players Theater Club. The show will be held from March 8 to 14 at HCC's Kepler Center and will feature more than 40 pieces of student work. Benita Keller, a local fine arts photographer and HCC adjunct instructor, will jury the exhibition. This event is free and open to the public. An opening reception will be Friday from 4 to 6 p.m. Light refreshments will be served.

Calling all local history buffs! Rebecca Rush, Outreach Coordinator for the Oak Hill Project, is looking for photographs and stories relating to the history of the Oak Hill Historic District. Some of the goals of the Oak Hill Project are to create learning programs, a booklet, web- site and interpretive walking tours of the Oak Hill Historic District and related areas. Rush plans to produce a map that will be available online with interpretations of the Garden City project features still evident in Oak Hill today - the protected tree canopy, walk-to-work concepts, curving streets and several special historical homes.

People are sharing photos of the quiet streets of Boston on Twitter today.

My husband recently reminded me that we should start gathering photos to display at our son's high school graduation celebration. Even though part of me wanted to delay this task in hopes that it would postpone the event, I knew my husband was right. It was time to look for photos. My hat is tipped to scrap-booking enthusiasts. I never seem to be together enough to crop and cut and paste or whatever it is they do at those all-night gatherings. Most of my children's photos from the early days are still in boxes.

Students at Hagerstown Community College will exhibit photographic artwork in April at the Washington County Arts Council, 14 W. Washington Str. in Hagerstown. “The Eye Test 2” exhibit will feature artwork by HCC students in Benita Keller's advanced photography class, “Photography for Public Discourse.” The course teaches students about various aspects of fine arts photography, including portrait, event and street photography with commercial applications.  Students participating in the exhibition include Bonnie and Daniel Elgin of Hagerstown; Sherry Frey of Chambersburg, Pa.; Stephanie Glover of Hagerstown; Rebecca Hose of Williamsport; George Owens of Chambersburg, Pa.; and David Stealey of Hagerstown.

Hearty Pet will host two community events this weekend that will be family friendly and benefit two local pet rescues. A spring-themed pet photo shoot will be Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. with Wertman Photography and an Easter egg hunt will be Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m. with the egg hunt starting at 2 p.m. Both events are at Hearty Pet. Hearty Pet has teamed up with Hagerstown-based Wertman Photography to help give local residents a...

The Larkin Tea Co. is sponsoring a competition to find the best knitted, crocheted or felted wool tea cozy. The pattern does not have to be an original creation. It can be something previously made, and you can enter more than once. Photos will be posted on the company's website, and whoever receives the most votes will win. The winner will receive a selection of Larkin Tea Co. teas, plus tea-related gifts. All participants will receive a package of Larkin tea and a free one-year online/digital subscription to The Tea House Times.

Sunday, March 10, 1 p.m. Upton Community Center, 8978 Kuhn Road, Greencastle, Pa. Steamers, tableware and water provided. Bring one hot dish and one cold dish to share, your own beverages, and photos. Games for adults and children, white elephant sale.

A reader recently called Mail Call to ask where residents can turn in empty medication bottles. In Hagerstown, plastic containers with numbers one through seven  - medicine bottles, milk bottles, water bottles, detergent bottles, shampoo bottles, bleach bottles, etc. - are acceptable recyclables in the city's curb-side program, according to City Engineer Rodney Tissue. Bottles with labels will be accepted, he said, but the lids and medicine should be removed. Washington County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Carly Hose said the sheriff's office accepts leftover medicine and the bottles as part of its Prescription Drug Turn-in Program.

Several students at Hagerstown Community College will exhibit work in an upcoming juried photography exhibition sponsored by HCC's Robinwood Players Theater Club. The show will be held from March 8 to 14 at HCC's Kepler Center and will feature more than 40 pieces of student work. Benita Keller, a local fine arts photographer and HCC adjunct instructor, will jury the exhibition. This event is free and open to the public. An opening reception will be Friday from 4 to 6 p.m. Light refreshments will be served.

It's nighttime on the fabled Outer Banks of North Carolina and a stretch of road from Frisco to Hatteras is swathed in darkness. A few yards from the asphalt are sea oats, sand dunes and half-buried wood-and-wire fences. But in these late hours, nothing is visible. During the day, soft clouds burn pink above the water and, in certain spots, wild mustangs graze on sea grass. This narrow band of sand known as the Outer Banks is a place of serenity and natural beauty - the kind of setting that beckons artists and photographers.

  Baker to give Civil War lecture “The War You Might Have Overlooked” will be presented by Tamela Baker Thursday Feb. 7,  at 7 p.m. at Washington County Museum of Fine Arts. Baker will be featured as the sixth of 11 speakers in the yearlong Civil War lecture series presented by the museum.  The lectures are offered in conjunction with the museum's headline exhibition, “Valley of the Shadow,” commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. Dinner will be served in the museum's Kaylor Atrium at 6 p.m., followed by the lecture in the Museum's Bowman Concert Gallery at 7 p.m. The lecture is sponsored in part by a Maryland Heritage Areas Authority grant and M&T Bank.