By ROWENA PLETT

Staff writer

A photo taken by Ellie Just, 15, of rural Marion hangs on a wall in the Dean of Agriculture’s office at Kansas State University. It’s a picture of an owl and won a purple ribbon at the state fair.

“We were coming out of a pasture in my grandpa’s Ranger when we saw the owl sitting on a post,” she said. “It sat there for five minutes. I guess I was in the right place at the right time.”

A year earlier, another of Ellie’s photos, a purple-ribbon picture of a bumblebee, was displayed in the governor’s office.

This year, yet another purple-ribbon photo is in the Kansas 4-H calendar. It features heads and grains of wheat in her Grandpa’s hand.

Ellie lives with her grandparents, Rod and Shirley Suderman, who farm west and south of Aulne. Ellie’s grandmother schools her at home.

Ellie acquired a Canon EOS camera at age 7, when she joined 4-H, and still uses it.

She was inspired to do photography because she had an aunt who had been in 4-H and regretted not doing a photography project.

She has attended numerous workshops to increase her skills.

She said her favorite subjects are old things, animals, and butterflies.

Her grandparents make sure she has plenty of opportunities to practice. She goes on walks with her grandmother and often takes rides around the farm with her grandfather in his pickup.

Her grandmother shares her love of photography.

“One reason for Ellie’s success is that she takes hundreds of pictures,” she said. “She has already taken 25 or 30 for the next 4-H year. All of her pictures are taken within a four- or five-mile radius of the farm.”

She keeps her photos on a computer and is hoping to submit some of them for publication. She is considering creating note cards that would feature her photos.

“I like 4-H,” she said. “You can try new things, set goals, and have a purpose.”

Ellie is a member of South Cottonwood 4-H Club.