Keen photographers have been out and about snapping the best of Bridport in a bid to win a brand new competition.

Bridport Charter Fair launched its first photography contest in the run-up to the big day, and the winners gathered for a presentation evening at Mountfield.

Christopher Ross won the Street Photographer category, Jason Webster won Architecture and Phil George won two prizes with his Portrait and Smartphone entries. James Colclough won not only the Landscape category, but also walked off with the Judges’ Prize for the best photo overall. The winner of the Community Choice Award was Paul Coggins.

Each of the runners up in the five categories were displayed in the window of Footeprints.

Invited to select their favourites, the public chose the well-known face of Cyril Whitlock of Groves Nurseries.

Organiser Mark Margetts has thanked Jason Foote of Footeprints and Alan Watts of Procanvas for their prize donations, as well as fellow judges Chris Hilton of Bridport Camera Club and John Tilsley of Dorchester Camera Club for their help throughout.

The winning photos can be seen in Bridport Arts Centre’s foyer in the period leading up to the event and at the free charter fair itself on Saturday, September 29.

It will be one of three displays on view; artwork produced by children from schools within the Minerva Learning Trust will focus on Bridport becoming Britain’s first Rights Respecting Town and what that means, whilst students from the Sir John Colfox Academy will display sketches and models of the gargoyles they will be inflicting on the town this week.

Students will hand over 22 gargoyles to the businesses they have been designed to reflect, with Bridport Arts and Crafts, Footeprints, Carpet World, Wessex Jewellers, Book Shop, The Gunz, Fruits of the Earth, Locksmith Gary Pitcher, Aroma Café, Bridport Record Shop, Instant Redress, Ropemakers, DoubleD Computers, the TIC, Waste Not Want Not, Findlay and Butler, Gemma’s Flowers, The Bull, Animal House, Dorset Pedlar, Snooks and Toy Master taking part. The presentation will be being held at 2pm this Friday.

Charter Fair programmes are available from the TIC, Arts Centre and around town.