A FATHER'S picture of his children enjoying bath time has won him a £4,000 holiday to Africa.

Richard Sheppard, of Barnards Green, was the overall winner of the Panasonic Batteries Amateur Photographer of the Year Competi-tion 2005 with his image of Matilda, two, and Arthur, five, playing in the bubbles.

Winning was a complete surprise to Mr Sheppard, 46, who plans to take his wife Bernadette on the exclusive seven-day break at the Epacha Game Lodge and Spa in Namibia.

"I'd actually forgotten I'd entered the competition," he said. "I didn't give it much thought, as I remembered about a week before it closed and quickly sorted out some pictures to send."

His picture, called Bath Time, was also impromptu.

"I was messing around with the camera and took quite a few shots of the kids in the bath as they look cute with the bubbles," said Mr Sheppard. "I was trying different angles and this picture was the best."

The judges placed it top of more than 6,000 entries, praising its striking and unusual viewpoint, which resulted in a stunning composition. They commended Mr Sheppard for capturing a familiar bathtime moment, enhanced by good quality lighting while maintaining the children's modesty.

Judge Tim Clark, Panasonic Batteries' marketing and communications manager, said: "Richard's image caught the judges' eye immediately, as the perfect mix of imaginative photography and natural subject."

Mr Sheppard, keen amateur photographer, plans to pack his camera when he goes to Namibia in the summer.

"I'm really looking forward to it, although I think my wife and I should really get the prize for producing such beautiful children," he said.

n Another Malvern photographer also scooped a prize in the competition. Lisa Roberts appeared in the Gazette in September as one of three monthly winners with her picture of a cinnabar moth caterpillar on ragwort.