CANON U.S.A. AND PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME AWARD WINNERS OF THE "WHY DO YOU LOVE FOOTBALL" PHOTO CONTEST WITH A TRIP TO SUPER BOWL XLIII

Left: GRAND - Adult Action - Gravity Defying Defense
Right: GRAND - Teen Action - The Longest Yard
To see all winning photo click here.

National Photography Contest also Awards Grand Prize Winners a Place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame

LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., January 28, 2009 – Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging, today announced that Stuart Steele, 47, of Kansas and Ben Queen, 13, of West Virginia have been named the winners of the Adult and Teen Divisions of the Canon and Pro Football Hall of Fame "Why Do You Love Football?" photo challenge, respectively. Each has won a trip for four to attend Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa Bay, Fla. where their winning photos will be displayed at the NFL Experience, the most exciting continuous event surrounding Super Bowl XLIII. NFL Experience is located adjacent to Raymond James Stadium the week leading up to Super Bowl XLIII. Additionally, both have won a trip for four to the 2009 Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Celebration in August where their winning photos will be unveiled and on display for a full year in the Hall of Fame.

This is the fourth year of the nationwide photo contest in which one Grand Prize winner from each division was selected. Fans could enter their photos in two categories, "Action" and "Feature." This photo contest allowed football and photography fans the opportunity to capture the passion and excitement of youth football by submitting photos of everything from a playful catch in the backyard to any youth, school or organized football game.

The photo submitted by Steele was captured during the third quarter of a local college championship game. In the photo, the wide receiver positioned himself at the five-yard line awaiting a pass from the quarterback only to have the moment spoiled by a spectacular leaping deflection by the defensive back. One of Steele's other photos was also a finalist in the "Action" category.

Queen's photo, "The Longest Yard," was captured during a Middle School game and features a single ball carrier dragging several defenders with others in hot pursuit. Much of Queen's inspiration for photography can be directly credited to Canon Explorer of Light and Sports Illustrated photographer Peter Read Miller, whose personal Web site and NFL photo tips have helped Queen develop his abilities as a photographer.

"Year in and year out this photo contest has grown to become a valued part of Canon's association with the National Football League," said Yuichi Ishizuka, senior vice president and general manager, Consumer Imaging Group, Canon U.S.A. "The excitement surrounding this contest further illustrates how enjoyable photography can be for people of all ages."

The judging panel reviewed more than 10,000 entries and included former NFL quarterback Archie Manning along with some of the world's top sports photographers including Peter Read Miller; 2007 and 2006 "Why Do You Love Football?" photo contest adult grand prize winner Diana Porter; Steve Apps of the Wisconsin State Journal; Scott Heckel of the Canton Repository; freelance photographer Dave Drapkin; and Tony Tomsic, a freelance sports photographer who has photographed every Super Bowl to-date.

The other finalists in the 2008 adult division included: Michelle Young, California; Scott Strine, New York; Jason Day, Michigan; Tom Manning, Virginia; Rich Barnes, New York; Scott Rohloff, Wisconsin; Regina Dunlavy, Indiana; Derek Johnson, Texas; Randy Owens, Texas; Robert DeForge, Michigan; Gary Jones, California; Cheryl Padget, Michigan; and Greg Kremer, Minnesota

The other finalists in the 2008 teen division included: Garreth Patterson, Alaska; Jessica Brown, Georgia; Quenton Rexroth, Pennsylvania (twice); Hailey Austin, Texas; Aaron Montes, Texas; Nam-My Le, Texas; Cody Tyler, Montana; Ryan Morris, California; Kristyn Russell, Kansas; Richard Gonzales, California; Samantha Cunningham, Texas; and Casey Jackson, Texas.

Source: Canon