Instinct may not be taught, but it can be coaxed.

“Kids tend to have a good eye,” said Candia Historical Society member Linda Thomas. “I don’t know if they realize how good their instincts are for taking good pictures.”

Thomas was the organizer of the third annual historical society youth photo contest, a program that’s grown exponentially since it started.

The Candia Historical Society displays photos each year at Old Home Day, and winners are given cash prizes.

This year’s entries are currently on display at the Smyth Public Library. This year’s theme was “Things that Remind Me of Candia.”

Twelve-year-old Jonathan Dylyn was the only contestant in the contest’s first run in 2004. This year, he submitted a photo of the library blanketed by snow.

He said he’s been interested in photography for several years.

“I thought it would be good to try because I saw other people doing it,” he said.

Now Dylyn’s appreciation for the medium has deepened as he works toward a Boy Scout merit badge for photography.

“You can take a picture and keep it as a memory,” he said.

Thirteen-year-old Sierra Soucy won a prize this year for her photograph of an unsaddled horse galloping around a white fence.

The horse, said Soucy, is named Jimmy and belongs to her friend, neighbor and fellow contestant Bianca Severino.

Keeping the image from blurring was the biggest challenge, she said.

“When I was on the porch I just kept pressing the button,” said Soucy. “I had a bunch of pictures.”

Sarah Lavalle’s prize winning photo, “Where Time Stands Still,” modified with a sepia effect, showed a pathway leading to a small cemetery.

“It kind of reminded me of the old days,” she said.

This year’s youngest contestant was Emma Tierno, whose photo was titled, “Self Portrait: First Day of Kindergarten.”