Published on October 29, 2014 by Jimmy Lichtenwalter  
Matt Johnston photo of Reid Chapel

Samford University student Matt Johnston recently received some very exciting news from his home state of Kentucky. Johnston, a sophomore political science major from Paducah, is an avid photographer and has been taking pictures for more than three years. This year, he submitted 14 of his photographs to compete in the Kentucky State Fair.

One of his photos went all the way through the county level to the state-wide level, before being named Grand Champion. Johnston’s photo was chosen over about 2,000 other submissions.

The winning photograph shows Samford University’s own Reid Chapel shining brightly in a misty January evening. Johnston said he spotted this striking image while walking around campus one night.

“I like to walk around campus at night sometimes and look for things that catch my eye,” he said. “I don’t set out to try and take pictures of things; I just like to let things happen.”

Jimmy Lichtenwalter is a journalism and mass communication major and a news and feature writer in the Office of Marketing and Communication.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 6,101 students from 45 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.