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Celebrating South Dakota's Favorite Shutterbug

Jan 21, 2013

One of our favorite photographers, Chad Coppess, received a real honor last week at the State Tourism Conference. Chad was given the 2013 A.H. Pankow Award, which honors those who have made a contribution to South Dakota's tourist indusry.

Coppess is the senior photographer for South Dakota Tourism. He's traveled all over our state with his camera, taking shots that capture our state's beauty and fun. He co-founded the Black Hills Photo Shootout with Scott Howard, created South Dakota-themed backdrops for an online racing game, and writes three blogs celebrating South Dakota in music, film and photography. You've seen his photos in the pages of South Dakota Magazine and on this website many times.

Let's celebrate this honor with a few of our favorite Coppess photos. Congratulations, Chad, and keep up the great work!

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Chad Coppess, senior photographer at the S.D. Department of Tourism, recently won the A.H. Pankow Award for his efforts in promoting South Dakota.
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Jana Lane, our circulation director, mentioned the show-off bison bull on our March/April 2011 cover as a favorite Coppess photo.
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In one of his columns of photography tips, Coppess advised, "Silhouettes against sunsets can make spectacular photos."
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Pierre's Capitol Lake is a haven for geese in winter.
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Two young cowboys watch intently as barrel racers compete in the Days of '76 arena.
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John Stamos made faces at the photographer while playing drums with the Beach Boys in Mitchell.
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Advertising Director Heidi Marsh likes this misty winter farm scene.
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Laura Andrews has a soft spot for this whitetail buck, who posed for Coppess at Custer State Park. Photo from Chad's blog, Dakotagraph.
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A mountain goat visits Mt. Rushmore.
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Ghost towns are a favorite subject for Coppess. Here's one of the few remaining structures at Capa. South Dakota.

Comments

06:09 pm - Mon, January 21 2013

Bernie said:

Congrats Chad, nobody deserves the award more than you and in fact the award now carries more weight now that you are among the honorees. And great speech ... everybody who won an award after you just mimicked your remarks. Seriously, congrats, we love working with you and our readers appreciate you more than you could know.

04:34 am - Tue, January 22 2013

Chad Coppess said:

Thank you very much Bernie, Katie and the entire staff at South Dakota Magazine - all former winners of the Pankow award yourselves. I appreciate everything you have done in providing a place for photographers to share their work with the world.

06:57 pm - Fri, January 25 2013

Paul Schiller said:

Congratulations Chad on recent recognition. You are a great shooter and are doing wonderful things for the South Dakota and for the photography profession.