THE PHOTO CONTEST

“Classics,” The Times’ 16th annual photography contest (May 28), asked for photos that captured the Southern California image. Top honors went to pictures of a garden hose in someone’s back yard, a rock enveloped in surrealistic colors and the sun trying to peep through the smoke of a brush fire. Where do these judges live, on the moon? Yes, we have brush fires, yes, we have garden hoses by the mile, but surely, our image could have been better represented by more identifiable pictures.

RICHARD R. ROGERS

Sierre Madre