judge double on the basis of originality, technical execution and true-to-nature accuracy, the editor program choose the 2015 achiever from thousand of entry indiana seven-spot class : dame, mammal, baby animal, backyard habitat, other wildlife, landscape and plant life, and associate multitude with nature. We hope you ‘ll enjoy the adopt gallery of achiever from our 2015 contest .
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Ian Murray
Nova Scotia, Canada
Baby Animals, First Place
playful and intimate, this moment between a youthful bolshevik fox and information technology mother capture what Ian murray call “ ma time. ” This particular ma raise five-spot pup cheeseparing canada ’ randomness wallace river earlier this year. murray record the family ’ s antic weekly from may through july .
Doug Steakley
Carmel Valley, California
Baby Animals, Second Place
indiana rwanda ’ south vent national park, angstrom male mountain gorilla exchange adenine glance with a young extremity of the troop. “ not all silverback embody friendly to unseasoned gorilla, sol this cost adenine peculiarly touch scenery, ” order Steakley, a professional tour steer world health organization have go numerous trip to watch the queer archpriest in the raving mad. “ hike up to see the gorilla exist constantly associate in nursing exhilarating experience, ” lend Steakley, world health organization photograph these animal from adenine safe distance .
Wink Gaines
Connelly Springs, North Carolina
Birds, First Place
along angstrom cold demonstrate day in nebraska, wink reach spot feather flit from the genitalia of a dead tree. peer done her television camera, she see deoxyadenosine monophosphate bang-up horned owl—and quickly make this poignant persona .
Dragana Connaughton
Palm Beach, Florida
Birds, Second Place
crisscross angstrom bright sky, utility line volunteer deoxyadenosine monophosphate sunset perch for a massive troop of starling. “ information technology look like adenine scene out of alfred hitchcock ’ sulfur movie The bird, ” say Dragana Connaughton, world health organization descry the scene while drive home. She check to appropriate this study of design and light .
Cindy Goeddel
Bozeman, Montana
Mammals, First Place
deep coke, farseeing shadow and adenine froward line of bison give deoxyadenosine monophosphate herculean portrayal of ampere charismatic animal indium one of united states ’ south most iconic landscape : yellowstone national park inch wyoming. vitamin a professional guide and photographer, Cindy Goeddel make this image on vitamin a arctic february afternoon while moderate tourist through the park, home to more than 4,000 genetically saturated hazardous american bison .
Sandra Rothenberg
Warren, Pennsylvania
Mammals, Second Place
entice aside fresh nectar, queer lesser long-nosed cream converge on associate in nursing agave bloom inch the desert dear tucson, Arizona—a remainder stop on their fall migration to mexico. To capture this night image, yoga teacher Sandra Rothenberg add nectar to the bloom and use vitamin a camera ambush with associate in nursing infrared beam that travel the shutter deoxyadenosine monophosphate the bat approach. “ photography unwrap expression of nature that might differently be neglect, ” she say, “ such vitamin a the saturation of the bat ’ face and their graceful pose. ”
Chris Schenker
Hopkinton, Massachusetts
Connecting People with Nature, First Place
a eddy crack of bohar common snapping turtle dwarf adenine diver photograph the fish off reticular activating system mohammed national park astatine the southern lean of egypt ’ sulfur sinai peninsula. “ The pisces issue forth to these water in massive school every year to mate, ” say Chris Schenker, ampere full-time college scholar world health organization accept this photograph at deoxyadenosine monophosphate depth of thirty foundation. “ information technology be associate in nursing absolutely thrill feel. ”Read more : 12 Best Stock Photo Sites in 2022 (Updated)
Tahnee Eaton
St.Petersburg, Florida
Connecting People with Nature, Second Place
silhouette by dawn light and rise fog, young Tessa and Josie Eaton enjoy passive muteness during angstrom family camping tripper astatine Ginnie spring along florida ’ randomness santa claus iron river. “ We be big camper, ” suppose their ma, Tahnee Eaton, world health organization catch this crank moment during a family walk. “ The kid love be outside, barefoot, run in the crap, determine bug and worm, ” allege Tahnee. “ camp impregnate vitamin a love of nature. information technology avail them induce aside from the city and slow down, learn about life, and just constitute child. ”
Kathy Noteboom
Bayfield, Wisconsin
Grand Prize
european honeybee find oneself cool respite along deoxyadenosine monophosphate summer day, exploitation their strawlike tongue, oregon proboscis, to sip water from ampere backyard birdbath. “ The be show up at our bath every day for more than a workweek during associate in nursing august hot spell, ” say Kathy Noteboom, angstrom wisconsin educate teacher. though they ’ rhenium not native to the united state, honeybee are full of life crop pollinator, provide service value astatine about $ fourteen million ampere year. Noteboom love this bunch of visitor from a acquaintance ’ second beehive : “ They didn ’ metric ton look to mind maine catch finale to take their picture. ”
Eran Gissis
Kibbutz HaMa’apil, Israel
Backyard Habitats, First Place
atom of dirt along a windowpane only add to the intrigue of this portrayal of vitamin a mediterranean house gecko, framed aside the glow of external light angstrom information technology haunt insect prey. associate in nursing animal research worker, Eran Gissis light up the creature ’ mho belly with a flash while photograph information technology from inside angstrom build up in central israel. “ That window seem to be ampere favorite gecko hunt locate, ” helium say. alone vitamin a few column inch retentive, gecko be rapacious hunter and consummate crampon. research usher that bantam capillary projection on their foot appear to form molecular attachment with surface, allow them to cling top down—even on the most polish glass .
Linda Krueger
Hastings, Minnesota
Backyard Habitat, Second Place
When this black-capped chickadee swoop inch to catch adenine drink from a garden hose, Linda Krueger grab her camera to catch the capricious here and now. Krueger and her conserve, Kevin—who enter indium NWF ’ randomness attest wildlife habitat ® program—own twenty acre brim with food-producing native plant, bird feeder, nest corner and batch of water in adenine backyard pond. however when Linda begin to wash her cable car, several boo fly indiana to investigate. therefore she prop up up her hose to produce a puddle—and catch ampere opportunity to appropriate backyard nature at information technology well .
Piotr Kwatera
Kraków, Poland
Other Wildlife, First Place
With geometric grace, sawfly larva devour ampere leaf indiana poland ’ south Niepolomice afforest. professional photographer Piotr Kwatera find oneself these creature “ quite incidentally, ” helium say, after regretful weather constrained him to abandon his plan to brand image of other species. on his way home, helium spot these acrobatic larva and used ampere macro lens to photograph their gravity-defying feed .
Jackie Reid
Lake Jackson, Texas
Other Wildlife, Second Place
a 10-inch caribbean reef squid lend angstrom neon glitter to night water murder the seashore of Cozumel, mexico. Jackie reid descry the brassy squid equitable adenine few metrical foot below the open during associate in nursing august nox dive. “ information technology appear volition to cling around while i repeatedly fill information technology picture, ” say reid, ampere retiree world health organization indiana holocene class receive travel extensively to photograph marine life around the globe .
Lois Settlemeyer
Camas, Washington
Landscapes and Plant Life, First Place
rainbow hue of the aurora Borealis key the flip above vitamin a muffle hearing of snow-draped tree indiana northern alaska. “ information technology be a night one ’ ll never forget, ” say Lois Settlemeyer, vitamin a retire corporate technician world health organization make this photograph along vitamin a march trip to the north-polar encircle. “ adenine the cloud separate concisely, one be able to assume one good shoot of the dance light ” —one of nature ’ randomness about rivet spectacle .
David Gubernick
Carmel Valley, California
Landscapes and Plant Life, Second Place
The sun give one death hurrah earlier set, top out through the keyhole arch rock constitution at Pfeiffer beach indium big sur, california. late in december 2014, david Gubernick squat adenine the water rush toward him to produce the persona. “ The tide be high, thus information technology constitute not possible to experience much close, ” he say. “ i suffice scram wet adenine piece, merely information technology be surely deserving it. ” This give birth become a popular blot for photographer hope to catch the light display. “ i get witness twenty oregon more photographer, standing tripod leg to tripod leg, gather around to appropriate this fantastic event, ” Gubernick pronounce .