Dramatic sunrise takes photo contest prize

Paul Jones' fantastic photo of Top Withens, the ruined farmhouse reputedly the inspiration for the location of Emily Brontë's classic Wuthering Heights, scooped most public phone and text votes in the contest.

Mr Jones, 46, from Rosslyn Grove in Haworth, set off at 5am one day in the summer to capture the dramatic sunrise.

"I was lucky that the conditions were just right," he said.

"I've been up there before and couldn't see anything for mist.

"You can walk to Top Withens every morning and not get what you're looking for. It's pot luck.

"But everything that day was spot on and I was really pleased with the result."

Mr Jones, a construction site foreman, has been an enthusiastic photographer for several years and is often armed with his Canon camera when out walking.

One of his photos was a runner-up in last year's KN competition.

"I'm delighted to have gone one better this year!" he added.

Mr Jones will receive Argos vouchers worth £350 and his prized picture will be scanned onto a giant 30in by 20in canvas, worth about £100, courtesy of Max Spielmann.

Runners-up Harris Catley and Alan Birch will each receive a 30in by 20in canvas of their entries.

The competition was held in conjunction with the Airedale Shopping Centre.

Centre manager, Steve Seymour, said the standard of entries this year was outstanding.

"We received some fantastic photos and choosing the ten finalists to enter the vote was a hugely difficult task," he said.

"Paul's superb photo is a very worthy winner."

Keighley News content editor, Richard Parker, congratulated all those who took part.

"The entries showed just what a fantastic and scenic area we're fortunate enough to live in," he said.

"We had an extremely tough job shortlisting the entries and any one of the final ten would have been a worthy winner.

"Our congratulations go to Paul and the runners-up. They should be very proud of their achievements."