The winning entry in the Downbeach.com Christmas Photo Contest is by Robin Cassidy of Ventnor.
By Tim Kelly
Robin Cassidy just saw an amazing moon rising over the beach and wanted to capture an image on her phone.
I'm not a photographer and I knew nothing about your contest at the time, said Cassidy, who nevertheless earned the most likes on our Downbeach.com Facebook page to win our Christmas Photo Contest.
The picture, depicting the moon and the Atlantic City skyline in the background from the beach in Ventnor, earned the Bally's Casino table games supervisor a $100 gift card to Bocca Italian Restaurant and Grill in Margate.
Hey, $100 can buy a lot of pizza, Cassidy said. Maybe I should share the prize with all the people who voted for my picture.
Cassidy, of Ventnor, said she actually celebrated the holiday with family and friends on Christmas Eve because she knew she would be working a full shift in the casino from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Christmas Day.
I was driving in the car with my mother, Rita, when I saw what a spectacular moon that was, she said. I left my mom, who is 82, in the car with the engine running and I just ran up to the beach to get a picture of it. It looked even better from there with (Atlantic City) as a backdrop, she said.
When I got home, I was scrolling through (Downbeach.com) when I saw the item about the contest and thought I would go ahead at post it. It was late, about 11 p.m., and I was actually the first person to post a picture.
Cassidy said she knew that she had captured a beautiful scene, but was still surprised to have won.
There weren't any people in the shot or anything that exciting, but it was definitely a beautiful moon, she said, adding that sometimes a photo's subject just speaks for itself and this was one of those times.
I was really excited to have won, she said.
She also said she is a big fan of Bocca, and will look forward to claiming her prize and enjoying the great food and drink at the local eatery.
