Left: Old Giant in the Fog by Ian Inverarity was named the overall winner of the David Malin Awards. Right: The Photo Editor’s Choice went to Jarrod Andrews for ‘Beams at the Arctic Henge’.

A South Australian photographer was named the overall winner of the prestigious David Malin Awards in astrophotography at the Parkes Radio Telescope on Sunday.

Ian Inverarity entered the Nightscapes category with his image called ‘Old Giant in the Fog’ for which he won the top prize.

The Photo Editor’s Choice Award was won by Jarrod Andrews from Victoria for his image titled ‘Beams at the Arctic Henge’. Jeff Darmanin, a News Corp picture editor, judged the Photo Editor’s Choice awards.

The competition received entries from every state and territory of Australia and as the premier competition of its kind in Australia, a panel of distinguished Australian astrophotographers judged the category entries. Dr David Malin judged the overall winner from the list of these winners, as the best in show. The judging panel included Phil Hart and Alex Cherney, previous winners of the David Malin Awards, and of numerous other national and international astrophotography competitions.

It was not just technical skill that was awarded. The prizes went to pictures that captured the beauty of the sky and the intrinsic interest of astronomy in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Celestron Australia supported the competition with prizes to the value of $10,000.

The finest images will be exhibited in two parallel exhibitions. The first will be on show at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory’s Visitors Centre for the entire year. The second exhibition, organised by the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, will tour Australia beginning in October. Last year’s received over 200,000 people Australia-wide making it the largest photographic exhibition in the country.

Young livestock competitors at the 582 agricultural shows around Australia are encouraged to complete a free online course in animal welfare and handling standards offered by Agricultural Shows Australia. The courses are designed for young exhibitors and judges of poultry, cattle, alpacas and sheep and are available on the organisation’s website. It was developed in partnership with the Australian Government’s Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment.

The courses provide training in the basics of animal handling and care, the principles of animal welfare and show ring ethics, safety and animal wellbeing. The courses can be accessed for free online at agshowsaustralia.thinkific.com

Jenny and Greg Maher from Nashdale visited the new CWA Op Shop in Eugowra last Saturday.

A new Op Shop opened in Eugowra last Saturday after lots of hard work put in by members of the CWA. 

The day was a great success and the next opening days are on 6th and 20th August. Donations for the shop may be left on meeting days, on the second Friday of the month or with members. 

Earlier in the month the CWA catered for the Rural Advisory Mental Health Program in the CWA rooms. Phillip Worrad the presenter, talked about “Responding to suicide risk in our community”. He spoke about what you can do to avoid getting to a stage where you would want to end your life. 

We learned about box breathing – hands together, breathe in for four as you take them above your head, hold for four as you take them wide, lower hands as you breathe out counting to four, and finally bring your hands together counting to four. 

Phil also touched on mindfulness and positive reframing – turning negative thoughts into positives. 

The fundamentals for good mental health include six to eight hours of sleep, a healthy diet, regular exercise, regular breaks from work, a relaxing hobby, and moderate caffeine and alcohol intake. 

There are many services available for mental health or contact Philip.Worrad@health.nsw.gov.au or call the Mental Health Line 1800 011 511. 

By Janet Noble 

Lauren Liebich, Caitlin Dean and Iesha Sinclair are excited about the introduction of Quiet Hour to Service NSW Forbes.

The Forbes Service NSW Centre has introduced Quiet Hour for customers to ensure a lower-sensory experience, with quieter and less stimulating environments. 

The changes may include the volume of music and customer ticket announcements being turned down and requesting customers to turn their phones to silent. Service NSW also offers hearing loops, low counters, and other accessibility features. 

The Quiet Hour times in Forbes will be on Tuesdays from 9am to 10am and Thursdays from 10am to 11am. Forbes is one of eight service centres across NSW where Quite Hour will be piloted for three months according to Service NSW Chief Executive Officer Damon Rees. The other centres are Auburn, Dubbo, Edmondson Park, Engadine, Erina, Lithgow and Queanbeyan. 

“Some people have sensory processing issues and may find sound and light overwhelming,” said Damon. “Major retailers across the country, including Coles and Woolworths, have successfully introduced Quiet Hour and customers have called on Service NSW to offer a similar experience.” 

For more information about Quiet Hour visit www.service.nsw.gov.au/about-us/our-organisation/supporting-customers-disability 

By Brett Sale