Share your summer vacation photos with the L.A. Times Travel section

Summer may be winding down, but you still have plenty of time to submit your summer vacation photos for the L.A. Times’ annual summer vacation issue. The print edition will be Sept. 21; many more photos will appear online.

We first asked readers in June to share their photos, and since then, they’ve been rolling in from areas as varied as La Jolla and Vietnam, Belize and Alaska.

And the photographers are as varied as their photos. In the submission guidelines, we asked that all photographers be amateurs, but we didn’t quite expect entries from readers so young.

Here, then, are some of our favorite submissions from young readers. They might be amateurs now, but based on the quality of these photos, we’re not sure how much longer that will be the case.

A peaceful moment at Lake Powell

Manhattan Beach resident Nicholas Thomson was on a family vacation to Lake Powell, which straddles the border between Utah and Arizona, that he says was more than a little hectic.

“To say it was chaotic is an understatement,” Thomson said.

To get away from all the noise and take some time to reflect, 16-year-old Thomson climbed up to a spot and looked down onto the lake and the family’s boat, the little bit of white in the middle of the photo.

“I was sitting here for about an hour thinking about my upcoming school year, the most important one of my life, and decided to capture the moment before I had to go back and face the chaos.”

Thomson said the photo is already filled with nostalgia for him.

“We were with a group of families that we travel with every year,” he said. “This time, though, would be the last time.”

Thomson said he was thinking about how he “had no idea where I would be a year from that point” as he goes off to college and leaves behind his friends from the trip, kids he’s been friends with his entire life.

“The photo represents our personalities,” Thomson said.

Sunset over Oahu

Sixteen-year-old Stockton resident Sydney Spurgeon went on vacation to the Aulani resort on Oahu in June. Though there were plenty of activities to choose from at the Disney Resort & Spa, Spurgeon decided to refine her visual skills by taking a class on how to photograph sunsets. Hawaii proved to be an ideal place to use her new knowledge.

“[I] practiced every night,” Spurgeon said.

Encouraged by her father, who saw the request for photos in The Times, Spurgeon sent in evidence of her ever-growing skills.

“This is my favorite sunset while vacationing in Hawaii,” Spurgeon said of the bright orange sunset showcased.

Postcards from the great outdoors

Delan Hilliard was on an extended family vacation with his siblings, their families, and his family. He found an opportunity to bond with his 17-year-old-son, Jake, during their 10-day camping trip in Yellowstone National Park.

All week, the two had been snapping pictures of the Teton Range at Oxbow Bend in Yellowstone’s neighbor, Grand Teton National Park. It took until the last day for them to get the perfect shot, however.

“On the last morning of our camping trip ... I was approaching Oxbow Bend and thought to myself, “I’m never going to see this again, why not stop and take a picture?’” Jake said. “So I pulled into the parking lot, threw the truck in park, and I jumped out of the car, iPhone in hand.”

What made this attempt better than the previous ones?

“The clouds gave the postcard-perfect shot an even more serene look,” the elder Hilliard said.

How you can submit a photo

If you’re an amateur photographer (no professionals, please) interested in submitting a photo for our summer vacation issue, the deadline for submissions is Sept. 4. Please include your name and city of residence, along with when and where the photo was shot. Photos must have been taken between June 4 and Sept. 4 of this year.

Also, tell us a little bit about what led up to the photo and what you like about it.

The photo must be high resolution, at least 1,300 megapixels wide and at least 1 MB but not larger than 12MB.

By submitting them, you agree that The Times may reproduce your photos in any format. Send them via email, with “Vacation Photo Issue” in the subject line to yourscene-travel@latimes.com, upload them to Flickr or submit them using the hashtag #LATimesVacationPhoto on Twitter or Instagram.

Please limit submissions to 10 photos.